


Eye of the Beholder

by bre_0



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Beauty and the beast retelling, F/M, olicity - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-21
Updated: 2015-07-24
Packaged: 2018-02-14 04:02:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 30,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2177196
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bre_0/pseuds/bre_0
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Oliver Queen was a beast of a business man. Ruthless and without mercy. Except with his baby sister's safety. When threats against her safety surfaces, Oliver calls in the services of one Mr. John Diggle and Miss Felicity Smoak.</p><p>Inspired by SmoakandArrow's Flash Fiction weekly Olicity prompts.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Fish Bowl

The elevator ride up was in a word…different.

Felicity Smoak expected many things when she entered Queen Consolidated; Guards at every corner, dark, dank dungeons, even some chains on the walls streaked with dried blood.

After all Oliver Queen had a reputation to uphold.

Everything she had heard of and read since being told by Diggle they were bidding for this assignment, all pointed to Mr. Queen being a metaphorical ravenous beast walking around in human skin. A master negotiator, he had built and expanded his family corporation by zeroing in on crippled companies.  He also possessed a ruthless efficiency only found in true predators, by incapacitated the companies and then dismantled them one bit at a time, auctioning off the unused resources to the highest bidder and absorbing the parts which would strengthen his organization. From all the gore left in his wake, she expected some sort of a Gothic structure with overly ornate pillars and snaring gargoyles peering down at her from their perch.

She wasn’t ready for the sleek, cold lines of the building with all it clear glass, gray and white marble and the chrome reflecting off the afternoon sun infusing the area with hues of colors and artificial warmth.

When they walked to the executive elevator she was taken aback by the inlaid amber panel and the richness of the gold and dark brown within its depth. Which is why she was now quiet and not speaking to John in her usual rapid fire succession of questions. Unlike other jobs, Diggle remained quiet about what exactly their security firm would be doing for Mr. Queen if they won the bid. Next to her, her partner stood rigid, the hard line of his face taunt. The worry knot in her stomach only intensified.

“Felicity,” John said, his lips barely moving. He did not look at her and Felicity knew he didn’t want the camera behind him to see what he was about to say.

“Yes,” she said in the same manner.

“Let me do the talking. Queen is…” But his voice trailed off. She did turn her head at him then, not missing the tick in his jaw.

“Different.” He finished.

“Okay.” Confusion clouded everything in her mind, but if Diggle asked her to stay quiet, then she would-or at least try- she amended mentally.

The elevator came to a stop and the door opened. A pretty young woman, slender and in a elegant dress of gray and black greeted them at the door.

“Mr. Diggle, Miss Smoak, please come this way. Mr. Queen is expecting you.” The woman’s long black hair swung back and forth behind her back in a shiny straight curtain.

Then she opened the doors to the main office and Felicity had to swallow a gasp.

The whole floor was made of glass. It literally felt as if she was walking on air. Underneath her feet she could see through the glass down a floor below to a garden or forest of green? She couldn’t tell, but it seemed the floor below was actually a greenhouse or botanical experimental lab because deep in the green depths she could see people mulling around. Her fear of heights kicked in and she had to resist from grabbing on to John’s jacket as her head spun. Felicity could not see the seams of the glass making up the walls and it was so clear she swore if she tried to reach out, her finger could actually touch the clouds lumbering past.

Her stomach jumped at the thought.

The woman turned a corner and the room expanded and off to the right a portion of the place held black table and chairs, a stark contrast to the bare space. Then in the center of the giant fish bowl, behind a mammoth desk made of glass and metal stood a tall man with his back to them.

“Mr. Queen, Mr. Diggle and Miss Smoak are here.”

The man didn’t turn, but a deep rumbling voice said, “Thank you Miranda. Please take lunch. I would like to speak to them alone.”

Miranda gave them a pleasant smile and disappeared down the hall.

Annoyance flared in Felicity momentary, burning away some of her fear of heights. Really? Sending his assistant off to lunch like it was the 1950’s. Jeez.

Then he turned and everything else she was thinking evaporated into dust.

Felicity didn’t know why it surprised her.

Didn’t know why seeing it first hand would be such a shock.

Especially since the fire had been so widely documented.

But there hadn’t been pictures, hadn’t been anything to show him after it happened. Only the smiling, carefree face of a pretty man who had been a party trust fund baby five years before.

This man standing before her only slightly resembled that boy. He was the same height. The short cropped hair was still blond and most of his face, still held the lines and curves from that young man.

But that was it.

Instead of mischief, his blue eyes were hard, like arctic ice. His lips were almost nonexistent,forming a hard line slashed on his face.

And that unmarred skin was gone. On the left side of his face, a large portion of it was marked with dips and craters, a physical reminder of the fire. Seeing him in the middle of this room full of sunshine and light, only intensified the harsh, unnatural dark patches of skin on his face. He stood tall and unflinching and let the sight sink in and Felicity knew, just knew, the room, the unrelenting light was all to showcase his face to its most grotesque and most stark. He wanted people to be off balance, he wanted them to grimace, he wanted them uncomfortable.

Felicity couldn’t help the small measure of admiration at his ruthlessness and willingness to use anything in his disposal, even his marred face as leverage.

Mr. Queen scanned them quickly and motioned for them to take the chairs in front of him.

Except they were a little too close to the desk, which was _way_ too close to the glass wall, a wall Felicity knew was there but didn’t _seem_ to be there. John moved ahead, but Felicity couldn’t move her feet.

Something flickered in Queen’s eyes, but then it was gone and the ice was back. A sardonic grin graced his lips. John opened his mouth to say something, but Queen just walked to her. His must think it is because of his face, she thought out of nowhere, but still couldn’t move, even when his shadow edited her own.

“Is there a problem, Miss Smoak?” He purposely looked down at her, his ruined face, raw and angry. Indignation sparked inside her and her mouth opened before thinking,” Actually, yes. I would like you to step back and I can’t sit there. It is too close to the edge and I keep thinking I am going to fall off and that won’t be good for either of us.”

He blinked and took a step back. Felicity could identify the surprise in his eyes.

“You are afraid of heights?”

She looked straight at him. “Yep. Now we can have this meeting in a place with actual walls, then I would be more than happy to sit down or we are going to have it right here and you are going to met my lunch.” She crossed her arms, her message bag banged into her hip. The thought of throwing up made her blanch.

John stood up and moved towards them.

Another smirk came on Queen’s face, but it held a trace of actual amusement. “Is that right?”

She nodded and pushed her glasses back in place. “Whatever it takes, just let me know.”

“Really?” A challenge, a spark sharpened his face and he took a step back.” Then, please by all means, let us convene to a more convenient location.” Felicity’s eyes narrowed at him, because while his words and voice were definition of cordiality, she could feel the mockery underneath.

“Lead the way.” She said, and swept her arm asking him silently to move and guide them to a better location. This time the smirk grew into a grin and some of the ice in his eyes thawed. The effect startled her, and she could feel a blush burning her ears.

Mr. Queen moved past them and lead them to another suite of rooms opponent from his offices on the other end of the elevator hallway. These rooms had actual walls and the standard floor to ceiling windows with the obvious seams to indicate their location.

Felicity let out a breath. Her vertigo and fear subsiding.

“Better?” Mr. Queen and when she nodded, he said, “Good, this way.” He opened another door and behind it was a large room, with an impressive mahogany desk. Behind the desk were bookshelves bursting with volumes. Picture frames with different faces littered the small holes left by the books. Some of them showed a younger, happier Oliver Queen his arms around and elegant blonde woman and a young brunette.

This must have been his father’s office or maybe his mother’s, Felicity thought, taking in the more traditional trappings of the office. The warm rug underneath the desk and the leather chairs. The muted abstract paints on the walls. The lighting in the office was much dimmer than Mr. Queen’s. The main source coming from the wall lamps mounted on either side of the bookshelves. It cast a gentle yellow light over the desk and soften his face.

Mr. Queen sat down and gestured to the chairs in front of the desk.

Felicity sat down without comment.

John opened the leather portfolio he had been carrying and laid it on the desk.

“As we discussed Mr. Queen-”

“Oliver.” He said, his voice almost like silk.

John passed for a moment and just nodded to Mr.Queen’s unspoken request.

Diggle pointed to the diagrams and continued, “Like I was saying, the security system you family had used in the past had been adequate, but still too lax when dealing with the current threats being leveled against your sister and company. “

Felicity observed the two men as they measured themselves and then Oliver, Felicity took his unspoken request to use his first name and included herself, lean back and look straight at her.

“And Miss Smoak, I understand you are Mr. Diggles’ computer expert.”

“First, Felicity. Miss Smoak makes me think I am a teacher and it bothers me. Second, I am not John’s computer expert. I am _the_ computer expert.”

Oliver’s brows rose and the smirk upturned the scarred side of his face.

“Is that so?” He drawled, his attention completely on her. “I have several Mensa members and a number of engineers and programmers from several government and top ranking schools heading my IT department, so I think I have the computer experts.”

Felicity snorted and pulled her bag to her lap and opened it, taking out her custom laptop. She flipped the screen up and started the custom program she had written last night.

“Alright. Have you been informed of any intel breaches in, oh let’s say, the last twenty four hours?”

Surprise and concern colored his face, but a scowl turned down his mouth and his forehead scrunched up.

“No.”

She couldn’t help the wide smile on her face, knowing it was a bit smug when she turned her laptop over so he could see the screen.

On it, she had opened several documents. _Highly sensitive_ documents emblazoned with QC’s logo.

Shock make his mouth drop a little and his fingers curled into a fist, then like a switch turned on, Oliver’s face turned red. His eyes burned and he snatched up the phone, punched some numbers and when a voice came on the other end, he barked , “Milton. I want an emergency meeting with you and the other IT heads in an hour.”

He slammed the phone down and leveled Felicity with a hard look. Felicity only smiled, not fazed in the least at his ire. She had dealt with this before.

“I wouldn’t be too hard on them,” she said, taking over the computer and pressing a button erasing all the documents in front of him, “Your computer security isn’t bad, I am just better.”

John smirked.

Oliver Queen looked at the now blank screen and then at Felicity.

“Is Mr. Diggle as good at security as you are on the computer?”

Felicity closed the laptop and tucked it back in her bag. She looked at John and said, “He is better.”

Oliver started at her for a moment, his blue eyes dark and unreadable. Then he gave her a sharp nod as if he came to some sort of conclusion and closed John’s open portfolio handing it back to him.

“You are both hired. I will see you tonight at my home to met Thea and go over the upgrades need to the system.”


	2. What is in a name?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Diggle and Felicity go to Queen Manor.

“What happened to not talking?” Diggle asked, crossing his massive arms after the elevator door closed.

Felicity scrunched her nose, “He spoke to me, what was I suppose to do? Ignore him? Turn into a mouse? Kinda of hard in that room.”

Felicity shuddered thinking of the open room with its crystal clear glass and strange forest floor.

Diggle shot her an annoyed glance, “No, but you could have actually let me speak.”

Felicity grinned and patted him on his biceps, “Come on Digg, it wasn’t _that_ bad. It all worked out. We got the job.” And she did a small fist pump with her right hand.Diggle’s expression just soured a little more, “He is a dangerous man, Felicity. I don’t want him taking notice of you too much.”

She stood still for a moment and said in a soft voice, “Digg, I am not a little girl any more. I can handle myself. You made sure of that.”

Diggle let out a sigh and it seemed the air expelling from his lungs deflated the big man, he became a little smaller, a little more approachable.

“If we didn’t need this damn job so badly, I would have never…” Diggle stared off into space, but his jaw clenched and Felicity knew he was grinding his teeth again.

He always did that when he was really upset or frustrated.

“You know one good thing about coming downtown?” Felicity hedged, watching her adoptive big brother turn to her, his face confused.

“What?”

Felicity wrapped her arms around Diggle’s. “Big Burger Belly! You know how much you love those shakes!”She squeezed, happy to feel the tiny rumble of his laugh through her embrace.

 

Oliver leaned into the expensive leather of mother’s former chair and re-examined the open files on his tablet.None of the information starting back at him was new.He had pursued the files on DSM Service Group and its employees when he decided on the meeting.However nothing in the files had prepared him for the surprise that was Miss Smoak.And that had been- _unexpected_.

Oliver didn’t surprise easily anymore.The last five years had eviscerated his naiveté, and hallowed him out only leaving him with the desire to rebuild his family’s name and keep his sister safe. 

Everything else was collateral.

He closed his eyes and for a moment allowed himself to sink into his mother’s old chair.The office had long since lost her floral scent. But in this room, he could still feel her, still see her sitting in the same chair, her blonde hair gleaming under the soft light. 

He straightened and returned to the file.He wasn’t completely sure what he was looking for, the facts all were listed in boring lines, Felicity Smoak born in Las Vegas to a cocktail waitress and a special forces officer by the name of Gerald Smoak. She spent the first part of her life moving from base to base until her father was deployed to the Middle East.He died during his second tour, after that the widow Smoak and her daughter relocated back to Nevada. There is where her story became interesting. Seems Miss Smoak was an certified genius, skipping several grades of school and going to MIT at the tender age of fifteen. By the time she graduated at twenty-two with her doctorate in Computational Science and Engineering, she had been scouted by a number of government agencies and corporations, including Queen Consolidated; Oliver noted with some incredulity.He looked at her graduation date and realized it was the summer before the fire.  

He grimaced and turned his attention back to the profile, even after a number of lucrative offers and incentives, Miss Smoak decided to join with a new, unknown security firm by the name of DSM Service Group, headed by one John Diggle.

Oliver frowned. Now why would a woman with so much potential decided to join a small startup when she had so many other, much more challenging opportunities?And from he gathered from his impression of her and the information before him, Felicity Smoak thrived on challenges. 

The thought of the blonde woman and her superior smirk when she showed him her computer flashed in his mind.Oliver couldn’t suppress a sliver of amusement, she definitely was interesting, Miss Felicity Smoak.

Oliver closed her file and opened John Diggle’s. Highly decorated ex-Special Forces. Three tours in Afghanistan and Iran. Left the force seven years earlier and started his company about six years ago.He wife, Lyla Michaels was also ex-Special Forces and a partner in the firm.Two small children.

Oliver looked for a connection between Miss Smoak and Mr. Diggle. When he offer the bid, he hasn’t expected to extend it to DSM, they were small and there was a rumor of a botched job which had Oliver concerned.However, Tommy who had hired Mr. Diggle a year before, convinced him to put them on the list after what happened with Thea. 

“He is like a ghost, Oliver. I didn’t even see what was happening. One minute I am flirting with Laurel and the next I am on the floor. Diggle took a knife and like a ninja threw it. Hit the guy right in the gut across a room full of party goers.”

Threats against his family, and his company was nothing new. However, after what happened last week, Oliver knew his current security staff had been compromised and he needed to take drastic action.

After his inquires, Oliver contacted Mr. Diggle for a meeting.The best way to evaluate was meeting in person. He needed to look at Mr. Diggle in the eyes, gauge how he took in his surroundings, how he reacted to Oliver himself. 

Oliver expected Diggle’s stoic stance and the other man’s dark eyes betrayed nothing, but Oliver saw him take in all the possible entrances and exits. He moved with an efficient grace, wasting nothing.

Oliver liked that and when Miss Smoak won’t move, Oliver didn’t miss how quickly Diggle moved towards the younger woman, ready to divert attention to himself and away from Felicity.

 _Yes,_ Oliver thought, tapping his fingers on the wooden desk, the dull thumps echoing in the room, _they will do._

 

The Queen mansion was located a few miles outside of the city and sat on of a rolling hill before dipping down into a large open expanse of land with a lake boarding the end. From the pictures, Felicity scrunched up, it was an arresting manor with victorian elements in its slanted roofs and straight lines, but then it had actual turrets flanking the main entrance of the home. A mix of the old and new all in one.

 _It was all an illusion though_ , Felicity thought, a touch of sadness gripped her as she looked at the well manicured lawn and ivy climbing all around the turret like a lover. _Oliver had done a good job, s_ he thought. The place _did_ look old, instead of it actual age. 

The Queen’s Manor looming over her was only four years old. 

Seems like Oliver Queen rebuilt his family ancestral home, brick by brick after it all burned down five years earlier.

The heavy wooden door was covered in an ornate carvings of a deer running in a forest. All around the frame, Felicity could make out a border of thorns and roses at full bloom. It was strangely captivating and equally unusual for a man who worked in such a sterile office to have such a beautiful entry to his home.

John shuffled next to her, hauling his bag higher up on his shoulder. He looked annoyed. Lyla was out of town on another assignment. Mia and Andrew were staying a few weeks at Lyla mother’s house for the summer. The empty nest was making John cranky and anxious, but not that he would ever admit it. 

Felicity gave him a small smile and raised her hand to touch the massive knocker on the door, when it opened.

The woman behind it was older, maybe early sixties, with grayish white hair, her eyes were a warm brown and upon seeing them, she said, “Welcome Mr. Diggle and Miss Smoak. Mr. Oliver is waiting for you in the library.”

The woman let them in and lead them down an impressive hall towards the back of the house.Felicity marveled at the manor. It was gorgeous inside.The foyer of the house soared upwards to the roof on the second floor, the open space was filled with gleaming wood and inlaid with gilded carvings throughout. Beautiful beams created an elaborate design on the cream colored ceiling.Polished wooden paneling lined the walls. It should have looked cheesy, it should have look dated, but the rich wood only look timeless and inbued the home with a sense of warmth. 

They came to a door at the end of the hallway and the woman knocked. A voice called out and when they entered the room Felicity couldn’t suppress the gasp.

Never in her life, had she ever seen a more beautiful room. This singular room looked like every childhood fantasy and daydream she had ever had rolled into one. It was large and tall, unlike the wood paneled walls outside, these wall were made up of floor to ceiling bookshelves. It had a second story with an actual spiraling iron staircase in the right hand corner and several rolling iron ladders with brass fixtures begging for use. In the center of the right wall was a massive fireplace encircled by a sofa and two cushioned high chairs. Her fingers itched to grab a book and snuggle into one of those amazing looking arm chairs.

Someone cleared their throat.

Felicity blinked. 

“Um, sorry, what?” She muttered, her attention readjusting to the rest of the room.

Three people stared at her.

The woman, Felicity really needed- _oh for goodness sake_ -she said to herself and extended her hand to the woman.The older lady looked startled and stared at her hand as if it was a foreign object, “I am so sorry,I didn’t asked you your name earlier.”

The woman’s mouth opened and hung there for a moment, when another voice, a male one answered, “Her name is Raisa. Raisa, it will be four for dinner tonight.” As solider being called to attention, Raisa’s posture snapped back and her face became a mask of politeness. Red streaked her face making her frown more pronounced.

“Of course Mr. Oliver.” She said and without looking at anyone else, left the room.

Now Felicity could see Oliver standing by the very large desk in the center of the room positioned perfectly to showcase the desk between the wide arching windows cutting into the wall. 

His face was dark. From anger or annoyance or impatience, she couldn’t tell.John only looked concerned with a hint of exasperation.

Felicity flushed again and willed herself to not be distracted by amazing room conjured from dreams.

“It isn’t her fault.” Felicity muttered under her breath.

Oliver directed his attention back to her. His eyes sharp. “Excuse me?” His request was anything but a question. Felicity bristled and straightened to her full 5’4. She resisted from crossing her arms. The brute was trying to intimidate her and while her pulse increased, she wasn’t going to back down or give him the pleasure.

“I’m the one who asked her name. No need to reprimand her as if she did something wrong. Isn’t there some sort of code that you are suppose to indulge your guests.” 

“ _Felicity,”_ John said her name in a low, hard whisper.

Oliver only held up a hand to John and considered her as if she was a strange object or insect.

His face didn’t change, that weird contemplative look still in his eyes, “Except, Miss Smoak, you aren’t my guest. You are my employee.”Anger flared inside her and she wanted to resort, but he had a point. She was his _employee_. 

He stepped behind the desk and they followed, letting the meeting finally begin.

She squared her shoulders and chastened herself. Oliver Queen was an arrogant asshole, but he was an arrogant asshole paying the bill. 

 _Silent as the grave, Felicity Meghan Smoak, silent as a grave,_ she reminded herself and sat down.

The rest of the meeting went quickly. Queen, Felicity wasn’t feeling very charitable to him at the moment, leaned forward on his desk, the light from the room played in the hollows and dips of his face and scar. His voice was clipped and matter-of-fact, but Felicity could hear the molten undercurrent of fury, “The persons behind this current string of attacks was able to infiltrate my security team and system.  They attempted to kidnap Thea while she was at a friend’s pool party last week.”

John’s eyes narrowed and he started asking questions at bullet speed: Why would Queen suspect his security team? Why would Thea going to a party not be known to more than just the Queen household? Who did Queen suspect would be behind this attempt and also, though the bid was as a bodyguard, what about this prompted Queen to bring an outsider to take care of his sister?

“All excellent questions.I need an outsider to make sure you have not been corrupted or bought.Thomas Merlyn recommended you and as a small firm, I know you would be personally responsible for this job and Thea’s safety.Isabel Rochev and Helena Bertinelli are not women to trifle with.They must be found and neutralized.

John tensed, “Mr. Queen. In what terms would you like them neutralized.” His voice was calm and neutral, but Felicity could sense he was a hair trigger from jumping up in his chair and sending Queen to several levels of hell.

Queen gave a horrible impression of a smile. Instead, it looked to Felicity like a grimace which did a terrible thing to the corner of his mouth and forced it upwards in the base into the mountains of his burnt flesh.

“I want them found and brought to justice.I want them stopped, but not terminated.Death is too final and frankly too easy.”

A shiver ran up Felicity’s spine. The look in his eyes scared her, they were dead and harsh and a hint of wild fluttering around the edges.

Then he turned away from John and looked straight at her, “Also, to ensure the success of this mission and to help motivate you, Miss Smoak and yourself will be staying with us until then.”

_Oh hell._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for the wonderful responses to the story! So glad you all are excited about it. I hope this chapter words for you as well and thanks you again for reading!
> 
> All the Kudos and comments warm my little writer's heart!! Thank you all!
> 
> This is FF#13 Silent as a grave. Since I am playing catch up, these chapters are taking over a hour to write, but trying to keep them within the time frame. Real life made this chapter take much longer to finish than needed, since it has been basically written for days, but I just needed to finish the ending and revise.


	3. Slumber and Silence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thea mets Felicity and Digg. The library hosts an late night reading session.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: There is a graphic death in the chapter. It is a memory, but a hard one to read. I am sorry!
> 
> This chapter is FF#14-Ooops!

"Felicity, we are leaving. " John particularly growled out the words. Queen frowned but that was the only indication he was not pleased.

Men, Felicity muttered to herself. Realizing John was going to do something he would later regret, Felicity did what she did best-take control.

"What John is trying to say, it is extremely unusual for me to be in the field. I am more a backstage kind of a girl." She smiled and willed John to calm down. He seemed to understand her unvoiced plea because he sat back into the chair. The tension still ebbed off him but now he sat still waiting to take her cue.

Love for John swelled.  

Queen hadn't moved, his gaze now fixed on Felicity, she continued, "So while it is customary for John or one of our agents to live or staying close proximity of our clients during a job, Me, not so much. I handle being their eyes, ears and intel when they are the in field  "

Queen's expression betrayed nothing of what he was thinking. Then he blinked and as if a veil being removed, Felicity could see the hard steel of his resolve in his expression," I understand your hesitation. The main reason your presence is needed here is because I require an internal investigation of my staff to determine where is our leak and how much Isabel and Helena know. Also, until this is resolved Thea will not be allowed to leave the house since it would provide the best possible way of keeping her safe. Also, for your work to be as thorough as possible, you will need access to personal systems here." He stopped talking but Felicity could sense there was something else he wasn't sharing.

She narrowed her eyes and asked," Why are Isabel and Helena targeting Thea?"

Again, Queen gave her that horrible humorless grin. " Because they are trying to finish the job they started five years ago. "

Shock ricocheted through Felicity, “They started the fire?”  She asked, incredulity in her voice.

If he knew who had been responsible for the fire all this time, why hadn’t he said something to the authorities?  Everything Felicity had been able to find about it all indicated the persons who started it were unknown.

The look in his eyes, a mix of rage and certainty rooted her to her seat.  “My father and I were responsible for the fire.”

A cold shiver ran down her body. Did he just say that he started the fire? The scars on his face seemed to jump out to her.  Oliver didn’t even blink, his held his gaze on her and said, “Isabel was my father’s mistress. At the time, my father did not realize how unstable she was,” a self-mocking grin graced his lips, “Seems like father, like son.  While my father was seeing Isabel, I was engaged to Helena.  We had hit it off when our fathers introduced us a year before and decided to get married.  Back then I was, “ He paused and finally broke his stare, turning away from them, exposing his unblemished side. It struck her, seeming his face in profile how handsome he would have been if both sides of his face had remained untouched from the fire.  Oliver continued, his expression far away as the words came out wooden and dull, “I was an asshole,” he said without infliction, “I was careless and I hurt Helena. I followed in my father’s footsteps and was unfaithful.  However Helena was not my mother and didn’t just turn the other cheek when she found out.  She went crazy. “

“She set the fire?” asked John. Oliver nodded, “But I know she had help. It wasn’t just the fire that happened that night.  Before the fire, Queen Consolidated was in the middle of a civil war.  By now, my father had left Isabel and she took it upon herself to create a coup of sorts.  She secretly bought up shares of QC and rallied a group of the board members and outside investors into thinking my father was too lazy and lax in his philandering ways to really have the best interests of the company.  She almost won, but the night of the fire, my father had been barely able to convince the board to stay with him at the helm.”

The cold spread through Felicity and she shivered in her jacket, watching at Oliver’s jaw clench and knowing the most painful part of the story was coming, “That night Helena came over and screamed and lashed out at me about us and what I did.  She said we were all going to pay and that the world would be better without the Queens.  She left and later that night the fire broke out.”  

“Okay, if they set the fire, why are they coming back five years after the fact? Why weren’t they arrested before?” John asked, his forehead scrunched up trying to make sense of everything Oliver just told them.

Felicity felt the pieces fall into place, and also felt the gaps in-between.  There was enough, she thought, to get them started, “Because Oliver didn’t have any proof. “ Oliver tensed, though she wasn’t sure if it was at the statement or the use of his given name.  The shape of it felt good in her mouth.

She shifted in her chair. That sounded so wrong even in her head. She cleared her throat and tried to focus.  Without permeable she opened her bag and brought out her custom tablet.  With a few quick strokes she brought up information on the two women.

Ah, she thought, that would explain it.

“Helena went to prison only a few months later for attempting to kill her father. And Isabel disappeared after the failed coup to Europe. “

Only a sharp nod was the indication Oliver heard her.  

“Why are they back now?” John asked.  Oliver turned back, the two sides of his face now visible, “One, because Helena just got out of prison about a month ago. Also, in three weeks, Thea turns 18, when that happens, her shares passed on by my parents in QC fall to her and if she was give them or sell them, it could give someone just enough to get the majority shares in the company.”

Felicity opened her mouth to comment when the doors to the library slammed open and a young woman bursted into the room, her long wavy brown hair streamed behind her, her hair seemed as agitated as she was.

The woman seemed to be all angles and sharp lines, from her angular face to her lean frame.  The girl vibrated with rage.

“Oliver Jonas Queen, don’t think for ONE minute, you are going to place me on house arrest!  I have a life you know and this paranoia HAS TO STOP. I will NOT live like this!”  She slammed her hands on his desk and glared at her brother.

Oliver didn’t move or change his neutral expression, only thing he did was flick his eyes to his left and said in an almost bored voice, “Why don’t you say hello to our guests, Thea?”

As if electricity had touched her skin, Thea straightened and looked behind her taking in Felicity and John.  A sheepish expression blanked her face, washing out some of the rage fueling her only a minute before.

A lopsided grin pulled on her lips and said, “Oops.”

Felicity smiled wide at her and held out her hand, Thea took it and they shook, “Hi, I am Felicity.  The big guy next to me is John, or Diggle, or Digg. Sometimes I call him Papa Bear, but he doesn’t like that so much. “ John grunted and extended his own hand to Thea, “It is a pleasure to meet you Miss Queen.”

Thea looked between them bemused, “Um, hi.  Sorry for that, my brother had interesting concepts of boundaries and how to overstep them.”

“Thea.” Oliver said her name like a reprimand and a plea, “Why don’t you change for dinner?”  Tension filled the air as the siblings held court in a battle of wills, but in the end Thea broke away first and gave Felicity and John a brittle smile, “Pleasure.” And disappeared from the room.

Felicity watched Oliver’s gaze follow his sister out of the room and for a brief moment he look very tired and exasperated.

She suppressed a grin because in that one moment, Oliver Jonas Queen look like any other adult dealing with a teenager.

There was hope for him yet. He turned back to them and she could see the mask come over his face.  Curiosity hummed under her skin and while part of her wondered if she would live to regret this, she had spent too many years honing her instinct and intelligence to not follow through.

“Oliver, could you give us a minute.  There is some things John and I will need to coordinate before we settle in for the night.”

Surprise bursted on Oliver’s face, but he hid it quickly. Felicity ignored John’s pointed look, but just continued to look at Oliver.

Oliver looked at both of them and said, “Of course, I will speak to Thea and will met you in the dining room.”  He rose and left.

Felicity often wondered why John bothered fighting with her when she made up her mind.  It really never served him the past, but John was tenacious. After the door closed, John roared but Felicity quickly put his concerns to rest, “John, this is not a high risk situation. It is fine and frankly if I had to be holed up during a job, there are worse places.  The man has really well-endowed rooms.”

John smirked and then she realized what she said and blushed trying to backtrack, “I mean well-appointed, well-appointed rooms. Look, we need this, you said it yourself.  A job like this will go a long way to helping establishing us.  Also, this would be a good time to bring in Roy.”

“Felicity, Roy isn’t ready.” Now she was the one scowling at him, “Really, Digg, because when will he be ready? You know he needs this. This as a controlled situation we can get. One girl, confined for the most part to a house. You can’t keep him out of the field forever.”

John scrubbed his face with his hands and sighed, “Alright, but if this thing turns weird at any point we are out of here.”

She grinned and kissed his cheek, “Sure thing Papa Bear.”

He grunted, but answered with a smile of his own.

Finding the dining room provided more difficult than it should have been.  Granted Felicity had never been in a mansion before, but she had lived on the MIT campus and that was much larger than the Queen Manor.  After a couple of bad turns, Felicity and John finally found it. The room was like the others, elegant, tasteful and rich-looking.

Thea sat at the table, looking sullen.  Felicity smiled at her and plopped down next to her, “So I take it from your expression, your brother tried to give you all the many reasons why you need to stay in.”  Thea shot her a hostile glare and crossed her arms.  Felicity leaned in and said in a conspiratorial whisper, “Think of this way, do this and indulge him and when this is all over you can blackmail him to a shopping spree for college.”

Thea snorted and looked at Felicity as if seeing her for the first time, “I like you.” She said matter of fact.  Felicity smiled and said,” Me too.”  It had been a very long time since Felicity had spoken to another woman in friendly manner, Felicity had  Lyla  but since Felicity had known her for half her life, she was like a big sister and didn’t really count.  She had a feeling the younger Queen and her would hit it off just fine.

Oliver walked in a couple of minutes later. He had changed from the gray tailored suit, to a pair of dark tan slacks and a dark blue sweater.  Seeing him in casual clothes made Felicity blink. He sat down at the head of the table and looked at Felicity, “Everything is set?”  From the corner of her eye, she could see John’ raised eyebrow,  she tried not to look flustered and said, “Yep, after dinner, John and I will go to collect a few things we will need on site.  Tomorrow our associate Roy Harper will be coming on board. “

Oliver’s expression darkened at the mention of Roy’s name, but he said nothing and only gave them a sharp nod.  

The rest of dinner passed basically in silence, Oliver and John because they weren’t talkers. Thea was still angry at her brother, but Felicity was having mini-orgasimes over the amazing meal,  savoring each bite. Afterwards, a subdued Riasa lead them to the second floor and showed them to their rooms.  Felicity was in the suite at the end of the hall, a few door down from Oliver’s and across the hall, John was given the room next to Thea’s.

When Felicity opened the door to her rooms she almost pinched herself.  How did people actually live in homes like this? The room was a study in pale blues and rose. The furniture was light wood, almost an off white to accentuate the lovely pale robin egg blue of the walls.  Rose accents were scattered masterfully throughout the room. Behind a lovely antique desk, she noted the room had it down private bathroom.  

Oh yes, very nice indeed!

In the end, when they returned from Starling, Felicity lemented internally about how little she actually had in her small townhouse.  She had stuff, yeah, but when she went to clean out her fridge so there won't’ be any science experiment waiting for her, she was surprised to realize she didn’t have anything to throw out.  She was hardly ever home anyway, spending most of her time at work or at John’s or hanging out with Roy.  Her townhouse was just a place that housed her bed and her stuff.

She frowned at the depressing thought and finished unpacking her stuff into the lovely dresser.  Looking at her watch it was late but her brain whirled and she couldn’t seem to get it to shut off.  The image of the library filled her vision and Felicity grinned. Time to test out that high chair!

Heat.

Suffocation.

Ash and dust assaulted his lungs and the air he sucked in burned his throat, seared his lungs. Coughing he ran, tears streaming down his face, his eyes itch and recoiled from the scoring flames consuming everything in front of him.

“Oliver” a voice said. So thin, he barely heard it over the roar of the flames. He turned, trying to see and underneath a failing beam, his mother reached out to him, her face charred, her fingers burnt, the ring his father had placed on her finger almost thirty years before merged with her flesh.  Her blue eyes wild with pain and despair.

“Oliver.” She croaked out again, but now her eyes shifted from his to behind him. Fear. So much fear.

“OLIVER!” Her shrill cry the only thing he heard before something slammed into his side and everything went black.

Oliver shot up in bed, heaving as the memory started to fade back.  He rubbed the back of his head and willed himself not to curl up his legs into his chest. No, no, breathe, he told himself, taking in a deep gulp of air, then another, then one more.  He looked at the clock and noticed it was two in the morning.

He grunted and got of bed.  During nights like this, there wasn’t any point at trying to go back to sleep.  His mother would only be wanting for him.  

Oliver grabbed a pair of sweats and decided to head downstairs to the gym.  The rest of the house was quiet and the curtain of slumber and stillness helped a bit to calm his heart. He descended the stairs barefoot, letting the coolness of the wood seep under his skin.  When he reached the landing, he was going to turn left to head towards the basement entrance when he notice a light coming from the end of the hall. Frowning, he wondered who the hell would be up at this hour, when it dawned on him that there were at two new people staying tonight.  As he ventured down towards the light which seemed to coming from the library, Oliver questioned his decision to insist on them staying at the manor. At the time, it seemed like the best course of action to maximize Thea’s safety and ensure their complete attention at the task at hand.  Though at this moment, with him still recovering from a nightmare, and someone in his library at this tender hour, Oliver wished they were anywhere but here.

Knowing this, he should have just walked away, gone down to the gym and just worked out until the physical exhaustion overwhelmed his body and he could sleep in oblivion.  He should have, but another part of him, a part which he did not examine, wanted to speak to someone. Just wanted to be reassured there was another human being in this world of silence and sleep.  

Cheerful light streamed from the crack in the door and when he pushed it, he was only half surprised to see Felicity curled up in a arm chair by the fireplace, a small pile of books sitting next to her on the small tables flanking the chairs.

Her legs were crossed underneath her, and her blonde hair was loose and tumbled around her like a cloud. She still wore her glasses and she wore t-shirt with a pair of flannel pajama pants.  

She was completely engrossed in her book.  He grinned, looking around the library as if seeing it for the first time.  He remembered her expression earlier in the evening when she had walked into the room and gasped. When was the last time he had seen anyone so utterly amazed? She looked at the room like a kid being given free rein in a toy store. Pure, unbounded joy.

That look made something in his gut tightened, but Oliver shoved it away. Even now, watching her read, he tried to school his features and try to regain some control.

He moved into the room and Felicity jumped and dropped the book, her hand to her chest.  He could see there was a picture of an old fashioned phone booth and the words, You Never Forget Your First Doctor.  

“Oh wow, you scared the crap out of me!” She bent down to get her book, her eyes stayed closed underneath her glasses.  

“Excuse me.” Oliver said, and moved to the other chair and sat.  The cushions encased his body and leaned into it.

“No, it is mine fault. Shouldn’t be reading Stephen King this late at night. Especially in a…” Her voice trailed off and when Oliver looked, she was staring at him. Her eyes wide under her glasses.  He frowned and looked down.

Damn it. He forgot to put on a long sleeve shirt.  He knew what she was seeing, The puckered skin running down his neck, down his arm, ending around his wrist. The beam had pinned him. He couldn’t breath.  In his mind’s eyes the fire licked around his skin, sizzling and crackling. Revulsion rolling in his stomach. He couldn't look at her. Especially since he was sure to see the pity and the disgust in her blue eyes. Tonight he couldn’t deal with it. None of his armor was in place.

He shot up to leave.

“Hey,” she said, her voice warm and soft.  He stopped and looked at her.  She grinned, and motioned for him to sit back down.  While he saw her keep sneaking glances at his body, at the burns, her eyes betrayed nothing. No revolution, no discuset, no pity.  Just warmth and a hint of inquiry.

She looked around them and motioned to the room, “I have got to say, if I had a room like this, I would never leave.”

“Is that why you decided to stay?”  He settled back down on the chair.

She smirked and her eyes twinkled, “Hell, yes.”

Then Oliver Queen did something he hadn’t really done in five years.

He laughed.

****  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading! I can't express how awesome all your comments and kudos have made me feel this week! Really gets my writing mojo going!
> 
> Massive hugs to all, hope you like this one!


	4. Bad Day, Good Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity day starts with a shock. Oliver loses his library.

Waking up to an annoyed Roy Harper was high on Felicity’s “This is going to be a crap day” list.  Roy, on a good day was tons of fun, he joked and dished out sarcastic remarks like confetti. But when he had his grumpy face on, Roy was painful.  He sulked and pouted and was a general pain in the ass until he got over whatever was bothering him. However being woken up at six thirty in the morning was _not_ kosher, not one bit. Roy better have a good reason or she was going to do have to teach him a lesson.

Felicity groaned and turned away from him, burrowing deeper in the heavenly sheets, “What do you want Roy? Shouldn’t you be with John.”

“I would be, but he left me here.” The words came out hard and sharp.  Felicity rolled back and opened one of her eyes, blurry vision coming into focus.  Roy glared at her, his arms crossed against his suit. Felicity’s head felt heavy and groggy, then she remembered why she was exhausted. Images of the library and Oliver sitting across from her in his white t-shirt thumbing through some of the books she had picked assaulted her.  

 _Had that really happened?_ She knew it had, but the whole experience had a dreamlike feel to it. He had been so _different_ , almost _nice_. She felt he had been thrown by the whole experience as well because he barely spoke and both of them sat in a comfortable silence for a couple of hours, until the sleep that had eluded her dragged her eyelids down.  She hadn’t realized she had fallen asleep until she felt herself begin carried.  In a haze, she opened her eyes and noticed she was pressed against a man’s chest, his heartbeat strong underneath the white thin fabric.  

She should have freaked out, being carried by her client, but she was too tired to care and anyway, he smelled nice, clean and spicy, and his arms, which hadn’t looked so impressive in his suit and sweater, felt strong and warm.  Felicity let herself drift back into oblivion.

Now, she was being woken up by her grumpy junior partner.  

“Felicity, why hasn’t you told me the client sister was Thea Queen?”  The question sizzled in the air, accusation in the syllables.

Sleep disappered and Felicity sat up in bed and frowning at Roy, “And why would that matter?” she asked, mentally scouring her memory as to why this would be such an important tidbit to Roy.

Felicity didn’t think it was possible, but Roy scowl deepened, his eyes shadowed in the poor morning light, “Do you remember that girl I rescued from that mugging three weeks ago?”  

Felicity shot up out of bed, she poked him hard in the chest and whispered to him in a frantic tone, “Are you telling me she saw you?  Damn it, Roy, why didn’t you tell me you had recused Thea Queen!”  Roy eyes widen and some of his ire dissipated at Felicity’s reaction.

“No, I don’t think she saw my face. The hood covered most of it, but I don’t think it is a good idea for me to be around her just in case. I didn’t know it was her until I saw her picture this morning.”

Felicity mentally cursed and scrambled to try to make the best of the situation, “Look, I had to practically beg John to let you on this job.  He thinks you still need time to recover from the Blood job. This is important and we need you here, but be prepared, he is going to be pissed when he hears about this. “ Roy cursed under his breath, displeasure ebbing off him in waves.  Then something about he said tickled the back of her mind.

“You said you rescued her three weeks ago?”  

Roy nodded.

Felicity started to review the timeline in her head, “Roy, I need every detail of that mugging.”  

 

John and Oliver were already gone to Queen Consulated by the time Felicity and Roy descended the stairs.  Thea was still asleep and the previous night Felicity and John decided Roy would shadow Thea at the mansion while John started the security investigation at QC. Felicity was in the middle of reviewing the material Roy gave her and her own records from that night, when Thea walked in a tank top and pajama pants, yawning. Her brown hair fell around her shoulders and she rubbed her eye.  

“Morning,” she muttered.

Before Felicity could reply, Thea’s vision zeroed in on Roy who had been leaning over Felicity looking at her computer.

Shock spread over Thea’s face, and the color drained.  A shiver of dread slithered up Felicity’s spine as she noticed Thea’s attention was directed at Roy.

“You.” Thea whispered. Her eyes wide.

 _Great,_ Felicity thought, _so much for her not recognizing him_.

Roy, whose acting abilities were pretty decent, tried to salvage the situation. He moved to Thea and held out his hand to her, “Hello, Ms. Queen. My name is Roy Harper. I have been assigned to shadow you by Mr. Diggle.”  Felicity willed herself not to react, and saw hesitation in Thea’s face as she stared at Roy’s outstretched hand.  Thea gave Roy a hard, inquisitive look, her eyes roaming his impassive face.  The questions hadn’t left, but Thea took his hand and shook it.

 _Disaster averted,_ Felicity thought, finally took a breath, but didn’t fail to notice the way Thea’s gaze lingered on Roy as they headed for the kitchen, _for now._

 

Oliver tapped his pen on his glass desk.

“That is really annoying.” Said a deep voice.  Oliver snapped his attention away from outside view and turned to see Diggle had returned from the security office.

Oliver kept tapping.

Diggle smirked and said, “I have interviewed the team here.  I have placed Felicity’s programing in the system to see if there any been any suspicious activity via electronic communications.”

Oliver tensed at the sound of Felicity’s name, remembering the night before.  She hadn’t grimaced or recoiled at him when he came down. Instead she stayed in her chair, reading her book, comfortable and relaxed.   Then she fell asleep and Oliver marveled for a moment at the trust she showed him.  He should have left her in that chair, gone back upstairs and let her alone, except, watching her a while in the dim light of the library,  he couldn’t seem to do it.

Instead, he scooped her up in his arms and tried to ignore how nice the warm weight of her in his arms felt. He tried ignored how her hands curled into the fabric of his shirt and how hair draped over his ruined arm.  He tried to ignored it all and when he placed her down on her bed and she muttered some sleepy nonsense, he tried to ignored how his lips creeped up into a smile.

And failed.

“Diggle, may I ask you something?”

Diggle blinked at the polite request, “Sure.”

Oliver stopped the tapping and leaned into his desk, “What is the connection between you and Ms. Smoak?”

Diggle blinked and Oliver could sense he was one more breath away from telling Oliver it was none of his business, Oliver pushed on, “I did my homework on both of you before the meeting, Diggle.”

That information should have pissed Diggle off, or so Oliver thought. Instead Diggle took a moment and gave him an approving nod, “Good.” He said, crossing his massive arms.

“Then if you did your homework, you already know our connection.”

Oliver frown and tried to think about what he had read, nothing obvious came to mind.  Diggle smirked and said, “You should ask her. I will say this I have known Felicity a long time and when Lyla and I decided to start the firm, Felicity wanted in.  She has been a full partner since the onset.”

Oliver continued to stare at Diggle, but he knew the conversation on Felicity Smoak and her connections to John Diggle were now closed.

For now.

 

For the rest of the day Felicity kept eyeing Thea and Roy.  Roy for the most part blended into the background, and Thea being a teenager and bored, started to look for something to do.  She almost felt sorry for Roy when Thea decided to binge watch _Project Runway._  Then Felicity remembered how Roy woke her up this morning and her sympathy dried up.  Felicity smirked and disappeared to the library.  In the late afternoon light, the library had a wonderful glow. Warm and inviting, Felicity took up residence at the desk and noticed that while Oliver used it last night, it was barren of personality and any signs of continuous use.

 _Perfect,_ Felicity smiled to herself and in her head continued, _I, Felicity Meghan Smoak, lay claim to the library during my stay at the Queen Mansion._ She giggled at her own silliness and set up her computer to continue with the investigation.  She had already infiltrated the systems located at the house and monitoring the wifi and wired connections for any unusual activity.  So far, behinds the standard porn, she hadn’t found anything incriminating. But her instincts were telling her there was something she wasn’t seeing.  Tomorrow, she would need to manually inspect the systems while John conducted his team meeting/investigation here at the house.  The security staff had been briefed last night, and the head of security, Slade Wilson didn’t seem to please to have them on site,  but the rest of the staff did not question Oliver when he introduced John and Felicity to them.

“It would seem my library has been commandeered.” An amused voice said and Felicity looked up and saw Oliver walking into the room.  She smiled at him and tried not to focus on the well tailor suit and the arms and shoulders they hid.  He wasn’t smiling, but his eyes seemed lighter.

“Just while I am here. I promise I will return it to you when I am gone.” A shadow flickered across his face, but he smirked and took a sit across from her.

“This room could use the company. I rarely am in here.”  He looked around the room and for a moment he expression took a faraway quality of memories.

Felicity wondered what he was seeing, who he was seeing, because a mixture of regret, loss and tenderness, crossed his face.  Felicity busied herself with her computer giving him a moment.  But then she looked up and really looked at the room and remembered again that five years ago this did not exist.  The original had burned to the ground, and this man sitting before her, took those ashes and rebuilt this house from the ground up. For himself? His parents? His sister? His guilt?

“Can I ask you something?”

He returned to the present, his eyes intent on hers, “You may ask. I reserve the right to answer.”

“Fair enough.  I was wondering, did the library look like this before?”

Oliver scrunched his face and Felicity knew the way she asked confused him, she was about to clarify when he said, “For the most part yes, some details will always be lost because they were one-of-a-kind antiques and whatnot. I tried as best I could to bring the manor back after the fire.”

Felicity’s heart thundered in her chest as she heard him speak.  The soft timbre of his voice, so calm and smooth was in direct contrast to the mocking tone he used with her only the day before.  Could this be the same man? And when she thought of the effort, the love, the care he put into trying to fix his home after such a horrible disaster made the breath in her chest clinch.

Oliver’s eyes lightened against, and this time the unmarked side of his lips curled up, “Now, may I ask you a question, Felicity?”

The sound of her name sent a delicious shiver down her spine. Had that been the first time he had said it?  Trying to distract herself, she wet her lips and gave him a big smile, “Shoot.”

“How did you met Diggle?”

She laughed, “Really? That’s your question.”

Oliver nodded.

Felicity pursed her lips and looked away, “Pretty simple actually, my dad was under his command and when he died, John looked out for me.  His is my Papa Bear.”  Loving memories of the big man fluttered through her mind.

“Papa Bear?”

“Yeah, see John isn’t my dad, but he is a mix of a surrogate father and a overprotective big brother. After my dad passed, John came around in between tours and we stayed in close touch.  There really isn’t anything mysterious about it. John is my family, my partner, my best friend.  I had a teddy bear when I was a kid that I used to take with me everywhere. I swore it had magical powers and could ward off all sorts of things. I called him Papa Bear. I met John and the nickname stuck.”

Oliver gave her a wide smile now, “You actually call John Diggle a teddy bear?”

She gave him a wicked grin, “Sure, though he does hate it, but won’t ever tell me to stop.”

“Why not?”

“Because he loves me. Also, his kids call him that and he is too much of a softie to make them stop.”

Felicity looked at Oliver, watching his amusement over her answer flicker across his face.  Her eyes scanned his face, now following the trail of his scar from his throat past his collar. She remembered how much of his arm can been covered in the damaged tissue. She remembered how he almost seemed to curl into himself when he noticed her eyes on him.  Seeing the suit and the sweater last night, she realized why he looked so shocked at her expression.  He must try to always have them covered.

How excruciating it must have been,  she thought, looking away and back to her screen. She didn’t want him to think she inspecting him like some circus freak.

The air in the room turned more sombre and when she looked back at him, he seemed more like Mr. Queen than Oliver.

“I will leave you to your work then.” He got up and headed to the door.  Felicity berated herself.

“Oliver.” She called out and watched his back stiffened. He didn’t turn but answered in a soft voice, “Yes?”

“Thank you for answering my question.”

He said nothing for a moment, but when he got to the door, his answer fluttered in the air, like a ghost in the wake.

“You’re welcome. Good night, Felicity.”

The door quietly closed behind him.


	5. Training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity and Thea train. Oliver is not happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all again for all the fantastic comments and kudos to this crazy little story! I never in a million years could have expected such a response! You all keep these fingers typing! I hope you enjoy this chapter. It is FF#16 Detour. Thanks again for reading! You all are the best!

John didn’t disappoint.

It was late, close to midnight and Diggle glowered at Felicity and Roy from the comfortable arm chair in the library and said, “So the one night I take off and specifically tell you _not_ to go out. You went out anyway.”

Roy shifted his weight from one foot to the other, his face a study in chagrin.

“And you,” John’s voice soft but dripping with disappointment, “How could you let him go out on his own like that. You know better.” Felicity felt her ears burn as his words and tone sliced through her.

She felt the burning prick of tears.

Roy stepped towards the table and planted his hands on the desk, his frame almost like a shield in front of Felicity.

“She couldn’t have stopped me, Diggle. Felicity tried to talk me out of it, but I was hell bent. At least she stayed with me until I got back. She won’t let me go alone. I am sorry about it.”

Felicity looked up at Roy’s back, watching how he leaned over to the older man, almost in a bow, but still with a defiant streak that was all Roy.

John kept giving Roy a hard look. His mouth etched on his face.

“No more. Roy, I know you have things you feel you need to prove, but if this is going to work, we have to work together. I need to know what is happening with you two. One of you, “ his eyes flicked back to Felicity, “ need to keep me in the loop.”

Roy gave him a hard nod. Felicity said nothing, but did give Diggle an apologetic smile.

John rolled his neck and said,”Only good thing about this is you guys may have found some more information.”

“Yep,” said Felicity. She stood and turned the computer towards the two men.

“I need to question Thea, but I am sure Oliver doesn’t know about her near mugging or he would have told us.”

“Or he didn’t want us to know.” Roy interjected. Felicity frowned and said, “No, I think he is giving us as much information on this as he knows. If this is related to Thea’s safety and the attempt last week, he would have mentioned another one three weeks before hand.”

John contemplated the information, his fingers tapping on his massive forearms, “What do we know about the mugging?”

Roy went over the events in spare details, he was patrolling the alley outside of Merlyn’s new club in the Glades, especially after reports of women being accosted outside of the club or near the area. While nothing in the incidents pointed to drugs or wrong-doing on the club’s part, it didn’t go unnoticed that these types of crimes were on the rise in that area after the club opened. The team had been conducting recon and other investigations but nothing so far had come up as a connection.

“I saw her stumbling out of the club, she was under the influence of something and was crying. She didn’t notice the three assholes coming at her until they grabbed her.” Roy crossed his arms, now using the edge of the desk as a perch. His angular face pulled down in harsh, sharp lines.

Roy didn’t talk about his family. Mainly for the reason he was abandoned to the foster system at eight, but Felicity knew he abhorred those who prayed on those weaker than themselves. Especially on men abusing women. Those peculiar levels of scum received Roy’s complete attention.

That is how Diggle found him five years earlier, prowling around the Glades like a ghost in a red hoodie, attacking and getting himself into trouble. Then Diggle witnessed Roy trying to save a waitress as a group of men tried to assault her. Diggle joined in and afterwards took the teenager under his wing and his home.

The suiting up at night to patrol the Glades was only a recent addition to the DSM services, although obviously unlisted. Starling’s level of corruption within the law enforcement agencies and local government had allowed the Glades to fall into ruin. Crime, drugs, gangs all ran rampant throughout the Glades, and as former children of those streets, Roy and Diggle decided something had to be done. Felicity helped of course, being their intel, their eyes and the voice in their ears.

Roy continued, “After I took care of them, she scrambled down the alley, by the time I followed, she had disappeared.”

Diggle frowned, his forehead wrinkled with unanswered questions.

“We need to know more about what happened to her. This is going to be fun, going to have to tell Queen about this and find out what he knows.”

  


“Thea,” Felicity said the following day, digging into a bowl of ice cream, “Why didn’t you tell your brother you were almost mugged three weeks ago?”

Thea’s spoon clattered on the tile floor. Her eyes wide like a deer caught in headlights.

“How-w-w?” Thea stuttered, her face drained of color.

Felicity took another spoonful of her desert and leaned on the counter in the kitchen.

About twenty minutes before, Felicity cornered Thea in the living room and asked her if she wanted some ice cream. The younger girl, bored, agreed and they had ventured into the kitchen. Felicity was grateful it was after lunch and the kitchen was empty. She felt like a thief waltzing into the Queen’s kitchen and serving herself as if she owned the place.

But she had needed to get Thea comfortable, relaxed, so when Felicity asked, Thea would respond truthfully.

The startled look on the younger Queen’s face confirmed Felicity’s suspicions.

“He didn’t know you snuck out.” Felicity stated it as fact.

The teenager swallowed and looked down at her bowl.

“No, he doesn’t know. I just wanted to go out with my friends, but Oliver never lets me go out after ten so…”

“So you snuck out when everyone was asleep and went to Verdant. How did you get the fake ID?”

An unhealthy green tint came over Thea’s face, “How? Oh god,” she groaned and pushed the bowl away from her, burying her head in her arms.

Felicity patted her arm, “It’s okay. Everyone has done something like that before. You will not be the first teenager to ever sneak out.”

Thea’s head shot up, “But you don’t understand, Oliver will be so mad. So disappointed. He won’t ever let me out of this house again!”

Felicity swallowed another bit of ice cream.

“I won’t tell you that he won’t be angry, or won’t demand more security on you, but he does it because he wants to protect you.”

Felicity grimaced internally at her words. Was she forever telling Diggle to stop being so protective over her? That she was her own woman who made her own choices over her own life? Why then was she actively encouraging Thea to accept her brother’s overprotectiveness?

“Thea, we need to talk about the mugging. I don’t think it was a random attack. We think it may be related to the attempt to kidnap you last week.”

Shock caused two circles of red color her cheeks, “Kidnap? What are you talking about?”

“Didn’t something happen at your friend’s party last week?”

Thea gave Felicity an incredulous expression. “Sure a guy got pretty physical with me, tried to pull me away from the party to look at his car, but Mich, my detail that day, stopped him.”

Disbelief rendered Felicity speechless. A horrible suspicion was taking root.

“What has your brother told you about why Diggle, Roy and I are doing here?”

Thea blinked, confusion clear on her face, “He said you all are upgrading our security systems.”

“That’s it?” Felicity kept her voice in an even tone.

The younger girl nodded. Anger bloomed inside Felicity.

A detour of plans was in order.

“Thea,” Felicity leaned over to her as if she was about to impart a secret. It really wasn’t too far from the truth, “How would you like to learn how to defend yourself?”

Thea straightened in her chair. Her eyes now focused and strong.

“Oh yeah.”

 

“Good!” Felicity said, bouncing on balls of her feet and she jumped up from the mat.  “That was a good attempt, Thea. Now, remember anyone who is going to attack you is going to be bigger and physically stronger, but you have the advantage.”

Thea panted, sweat soaked her gray tee and she braced her hands on her hips.  They had just spent the last couple of hours going over different self-defense technique, Felicity had learned from Diggle and Lyla over the years.  So far, Thea has proven to be a very quick learner and with great reflexes.

“What’s that?”  She asked.

Felicity laughed and said, “You are a woman. But also a small one, which will be your biggest weapon.  They will underestimate you nine-out-of-ten.” Felicity winked and rounded around to Thea.

“This will be better to have a man help us out. After you get the basics down, I’ll ask Roy to come down. He trains with me.” At Roy’s name, a light blush crossed Thea’s face.

Felicity tired not to notice and internally smiled. Though it had only been a couple of days, Felicity didn’t miss the looks they gave when they thought the other person wasn’t looking.  Roy was harder to read, but Felicity knew him long enough to know that seeing Thea and knowing she had been that same girl he had save that night, really had done a number on him.  

For Thea, Felicity wondered if she kept looking because of the doubts and questions which spang the first time she laid her eyes on him.

“Okay, I am going to come at you and push you down. Now remember where you are to plant your hands and legs.”

Thea gave her a nod and her face grew focused as she watched the older woman circle her.

Felicity moved quickly and pushed Thea to the mat.  Just as Felicity had instructed, Thea extended her arms and planted her hands hard on Felicity’s shoulders, making it impossible for Felicity to push down further. Felicity jammed her legs in between Thea’s and rocked forward, trying to break the hold.  Thea rolled her left leg in between the gap between them left opened by her locked arms.

“WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE!” A deep voice boomed in the gym, exploding around them in echoed fury.  Felicity snapped her head to the entrance and saw Oliver standing there. Shock and anger boiled under his skin. A maelstrom raged in his eyes.

Felicity sat back on her heels and watched as Thea scrambled to her feet.

Felicity looked back at Thea, “That was great Thea. We will try some more tomorrow.”

Felicity could feel Oliver’s rage burn the back of her neck, his stare searing holes in the back of her t-shirt.

Thea swallowed and nodded, but she actually moved behind Felicity when Oliver roared, “What do you think you are doing Miss Smoak! My sister is NOT a-”

“Don’t finish that sentence.” She said. Her voice was ice.  Fury burned in her heart, but it had turned to a sharp frigid resolve.

His eyes actually bulged and she stood up and walked to him holding his gaze, she could see Thea from the corner of her eye. She looked scared.

Felicity’s indignation and disapproval formed a solid block in her gut.

“Unless you want to scare your sister even further with another one of your outburst, I suggest you ask her to leave and we can talk about this.”

If looks could wound, Felicity knew she would have been covered in thousands of cuts. He was passed furious.

She should have been terrified, should have been shaking like a leaf next to Thea, but even through all his anger, even through the bellowing cry, even through the molting, shifting color of his scar, Felicity didn’t fear him.

No, she wanted to smack him upside the head and knock some sense into his neanderthal mind. She want to scream and challenge him. She wanted to match his anger note for note, but no, she did not fear him.

Something she said struck, because while his face didn’t change and his eyes didn’t leave Felicity’s, he did say, “Thea, please go.  We have a few things to talk about later, _after_ Miss Smoak and I have a little chat.”

Thea didn’t need to be told twice. She rushed out of the room and from the corner of her eye, Felicity noticed Thea giving her a look both relief and regret in equal measure.

“Hello to you too.” Felicity said. Oliver blinked and actually looked stupefied for a moment before he remembered why he was pissed, “Who do you think you are showing my sister those moves? She doesn’t need them. She suppose to be under your precious Mr. Diggle’s protection and-”

She put a hand up in his face, effectively cutting him off, “Let me be real clear here, _Mr.Queen_.  Your sister is not a doll who you can bottle up in a room and only bring her out for special occasions.  She is woman. And sometime in the _very_ near future, she is going to leave you.”

It looked like Felicity punched him. He sucked in a breath as she continued, “She needs to learn to be confident and being able to defend herself.  Did Diggle talk to you?”

A hard, dark shadow crossed Oliver’s face, “Yes.” He said bluntly.

Felicity nodded, “Of course, your natural response is to throw her in her room like a five-year-old and put more men on her to watch her, but that will only to make her feel you think of her as a child and when things quiet down she will escape again, and this time get into trouble you can not save her from.”

His frown became more pronounced.

Now for the part Felicity which had prompted her to bring Thea down here in the first place, “How much have you told her about the threats against her?”

Confusion marred his face and he looked down at her, the maelstrom now a tempest, “Nothing outside of the need for increased security.”

Felicity let out a sigh and crossed her arms, “See, this is what I don’t get. Thea is a very smart, capable woman. Don’t you think it is would be in _everyone's_ best interests to be honest with her and tell her the truth? If you do, don’t you think she would avoid sneaking out and putting herself into dangerous situations until the threat is gone?  Don’t you want her to be able to defend herself if you aren’t around?”

Oliver just stood still, his mouth open, but he said nothing. He looked lost for a moment, and seeing him like that reminded her of the other night in the library.  Her ire melted. Felicity placed her hand on his ruined arm, she could feel the heat of him seeping through his suit jacket and into her fingers.

“Trust her, Oliver.”

He looked down to her hand and then back to her. The inscrutable look in his blue eyes drew on her core and she felt the air between them thicken.

Felicity licked her lips.

Oliver’s eyes followed her tongue.

Then someone coughed.

Both of them broke apart.

Roy smirked from the entrance, “Hey blondie, Diggle is looking for you.”

Felicity could feel the burn on her cheeks.

“Okay.” She told him and watched him leave, she looked back to Oliver and his eyes were again dark, but with something infinitely warmer than before.

She felt the blush deepened, but before her bravado diminished completely, she tucked some loose strands of hair behind her ear, “Oh and another thing Oliver.”

He just keep looking at her, like she was this fascinating, dangerous creature he was trying to figure out how to approach.

“Yes?” Now his voice was soft but deep like a shadow.

“Ever use Diggle’s name like a curse again and you and I are going to have problems.”

A corner of his lip curled upwards, “Noted.”


	6. Impulses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver asks Felicity a question.

Before the fire, Oliver Queen was the King of Impulses. He never thought of anything through, never questioned his actions or thought of the ramifications. He only lived to enjoy the next pleasure and indulgence, the next need.

Now, Oliver’s world revolved around consequences, around the constant thought of the ripples each action would cause. He lived in heavy steps, weighed down by guilt, remorse and constraint.

So then why was he walking around his own house, hoping to catch a glimpse of a certain IT expert on a Saturday morning? He should be heading into the office to work on a pile of paperwork waiting for him.

It had been a week since the incident in the gym and while Felicity and Diggle had made steady progress eliminating members of his staff from wrong doing, it hadn’t gotten them any closer to Isabel and Helena. The first member they cleared was Slade, which Oliver let out an internal sigh of relief. He had known Slade since before the fire, and had been the head of security when Robert Queen had been alive. While they were not close, Oliver still trusted the man and the thought that Slade may have been involved with the plot made Oliver's stomach churn.

Slade on the other hand, had been none too pleased when he was informed as to the true reason DSM had been called into the Queen Manor. However, when Felicity calmly stated that now that they knew he only like to read about history, pugs and the Muppets, he could help them settle the matter quickly. Slade had shut up.

Diggle, Slade and Felicity had spent a few days reviewing the rest of the information and outlining potential scenarios to investigate.

Thea on the other hand spent most of her time with Roy. Not that Oliver wanted to think about that fact too much. But after Felicity’s demonstration in the gym, Oliver conceded the point that _maybe_ he should tell Thea the truth of what was going on and allow her to learn self-defense training.

Felicity had been gracious enough not to smirk in his face when he and Thea had come back downstairs that night after talking, though her bright, blue eyes held a definite gleam.

Thea on the other hand did not have that level of restraint and openly smiled at Felicity. Roy, who Oliver had been reluctant to have shadowing his sister due to his age and lack of formal security experience, surprised Oliver by walking up to him and saying he would make sure she stayed safe.

The young man held his stare steady and with resolve. Oliver could respect it. And Oliver’s mind was put at ease knowing Diggle kept close tabs on young Roy and Felicity.

Ever since explaining the situation to Thea, Oliver also had to concede Felicity was right. Thea took the information surprisingly well and the stubborn set of her jaw and look of determination in her grayish blue eyes, told him she would not be reckless.

And that look, coupled with the trust swimming in her gaze, Oliver felt the urge to finish this and have her completely safe. The fact DSM and Slade hadn’t been able to uncover anything concerned him.

Which was the main reason, he told himself, why he was now trying _oh so nonchalantly_ bump into Felicity.

He had tried the library first. Felicity hasn’t lied about taking ownership of the room during her stay, outside of the times she had come with them to Queen Consolidated, meals and sleep, she could be found there.

Except today.

Oliver frowned and wondered where Miss Smoak had disappeared to, he knew she was still in the manor. During breakfast she mentioned she was going to be working on some searches, but seeing the leather chair empty of her slim form, set an unfamiliar chill through him.

Was he disappointed?

 _No, it was fine._ The other part of his brain corrected him. What did it matter if she wasn’t here. It wasn’t as if he didn’t have other things to do.

But for the first time since the fire, since waking up and recovering to take over the company, Oliver didn’t want to do any of them.

Instead, he just kept walking down his own house trying to find a familiar golden head of hair.

When Raisa found him looping around the dining room for the second time, Oliver didn’t miss her look of surprise.

“Mr. Oliver, is there something you need?” Her worried tone seeped into her accented words.

Heat creped up his neck, and for a horrible moment he realized he must be blushing.

What. The. Hell. Was. Wrong. With. Him.

Oliver cleared his throat and shook his head, “No, thank you Raisa.”

Before she could respond, Oliver turned and stormed up the stairs. Disgust roiled inside his gut. He marched to his room, ready to throw on his suit and race to Queen Consolidated. At least there he could get some work done and take his mind off his unusual guest.

Then he noticed the door of the room next to his open.

Felicity’s room.

He hadn’t bothered to check the room earlier and outside of stalking the grounds outside, it had been the only place he hadn’t checked.

Part of him hesitated.

The rest of him pushed his feet forward and Oliver gave into the impulse to take a peek inside.

 _She isn’t going to be in there,_ he told himself. _No harm in looking,_ he reasoned.

All perfectly logical to him and he felt justified for walking into the doorway of her room.

And there she was. Sitting behind the antique white desk, with its elegant curved legs. She hadn’t noticed him yet. Her blonde hair was a messy pile on the top of her head. He saw she wore a pink tank top, and must have been wearing shorts, because he could see the top of her naked knee poking up between her arms as she typed on the keyboard. Her teeth caught her bottom lip in their grasp and he noticed a crease between her eyebrows, behind her glasses.

During their short acquaintance, Oliver didn’t think he had ever seen her so unguarded. Granted, the first night in the library, she had been in her pajamas and been casual. But this felt as if he was a fly on the wall, catching her unawares.

The thought made him feel honored and also protective of the small woman before him.

Oliver thought back to that day in the gym. That had been a turning point, he realized.

When Felicity had challenged him, refusing to back down, refusing to let him dictate the terms, Oliver had felt a rush of admiration and respect.

How long had it been since someone had done that to him? His parents? Too long, he realized since as she stared up at him with her blazing eyes, her will giving her spine iron. 

Then Felicity had placed her hands on his burnt arm without a second thought and the feel of her warm fingers through his jacket and shirt rocked him to the core. Awe mixed with awareness zipped through him.

No one touched him there. Not even Thea,who without even realizing it, always touched his unruined arm, always kissed his unblemished right side.

After that, he watched Felicity. He couldn’t help it. It seemed as if as soon as she walked into the room, he naturally gave her his complete attention.

As of yet, she hadn’t commented on it and he attempted as much as possible to not draw attention to it. Frankly, the fact he seemed to have no control to this need to be around her, disturbed him.

 _Still you are here, aren’t you?_ The thought bounced in his head and Oliver wanted to growl.

Felicity’s eyes shot up and surprise colored her face, her mouth formed an ‘o’ and she blinked behind her glasses.

“Oh! Hi, sorry I didn’t see you standing there. I was busy running some searches late last night and when I got up I was too lazy to make the trek to the library.” She shook her head, “ Not that I am lazy, I just mean that I was really tired from last night and thought I could use this wonderful desk finally. It is feeling neglected.”

Oliver’s lips twitched at her babble.

“Did the desk tell you that?”

Felicity pushed a lock of her hair away from her face, “Tell me? Oh yes, of course it did. This is a gorgeous piece which is just begging to be used.”

A beat passed and her face flushed red, “I mean used as being useful not in being _used_.” Her eyes were huge and wide as if she was watching a horrible train wreck in front of her, “Oh god, just stop me now.” She muttered.

Oliver chuckled, feeling light as he walked into the room. She watched as he sat down on the reading chair facing the desk.

“I understood what you meant.”

She rewarded him with a lopsided smile. “What brings you here?” She asked.

Thoughts of Thea, Isabel and Helena all swirled around in his mind. That had been the main reason to seek her out. But now that he found her, he found himself giving in to another improbable impulse.

He said, “I wanted to know if you would like to have lunch with me?”

Felicity sat back in her chair, surprised but her face turned a lovely shade of pink. A shy grin grace her lips.

“Now?” She asked, taking a quick inventory of what she was wearing.

“Yes, I was wondering if you wanted to see some of the grounds. You haven’t had much time to explore.” He had? He sure as hell hadn’t even thought of lunch or the grounds or anything remotely resembling this madness, but he ignored his inner panic and stared at her expectantly.

“Sure,” she said softly.

Oliver smiled back and tried to calm down the sudden thundering of his heart.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry this is a short one! I had a hard time getting into this prompt (maybe because there was just sooo many ways to go) but I promise I will make the next one longer. Hope you still enjoy it and again thank you all so very much for all your amazing comments and kudos.
> 
> They keep me on task and writing!!!
> 
> Massive hugs to you all! Bre


	7. The Rose Garden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver and Felicity take a tour of the grounds. FF#18-Free Fall

“When should John return?” Oliver asked, mentally groaning at his horrible attempt to start a conversation. Especially since he already knew the answer. 

Thankfully, Felicity didn’t seem to mind, and just continued to walk next to him, her sneakers kicking at the pebbles used to make the path through the gardens. After he invited her to lunch, Felicity had insisted on changing and emerged from her room with a pair of jeans and sneakers, looking very similar to when she first arrived at the manor.

“Should be back tomorrow morning. Lyla is finally back and he needs the day to get her up to speed.” Felicity said in almost an absentminded tone, her attention seem diverted elsewhere. Oliver nodded. John had spoken to Oliver the night before relying the same information and assuring him Roy and Slade would be keeping close tabs on Thea, while Felicity worked on gathering more information.

“How man acres do you have?” Her nose crinkled upwards as he noticed she was squinting as if trying to see beyond the lake which extended a few arches down the slope.

Oliver said, “Right now, about twenty. It used to be larger, but previous Queens’ had sold off lots of land through the years to developers.”

Felicity let out a low whistle. They were on the east side of the gardens. Thankfully, the fire hadn’t spread pass the manor and the grounds had escaped a fiery fate. Thus the roses his mother and grandmother so prized still bloomed in their full glory. 

The roses sprang from the bushes, some intertwining around the iron gates separating one section of the garden to another. Since entering the gardens, Felicity had been quiet. 

Worry gnawed. Was being around him so long, draining on her? Was it hard to keep looking at him and not show the pity and distaste all the others could not hide? Not that this was a date. Not this most certainly was not a date. 

His scar itched. Oliver resisted the urge to scratch it. Last thing he wanted to do was draw attention to it. At least not with her. Very few people after the fire could actually look at him in the eyes without the pity and grimace lacing their expressions. For a while those looks were like being knifed in the gut, he wanted to hid in his room, remove all the mirrors around him. For months he was in agony, not just from the burns, but from the screams in his dreams, the horrible mess of his body when he woke each day. The daily reminder of what his arrogance and selfish had cost him started back at him each morning. Then when he went back to Queen Consolidated with Walter Steele, their CFO, Oliver realized how much of a weapon his face could be. It unnerved the other men and women. The squeamish looks became victories, and like a tiger, he pouched on the advantage. 

That day he stopped hiding from the mirror.

But, while in business he attacked with zeal and precision, in his private life, he was a piranha. Not that Oliver wanted to date. Helena effectively killed any desire for the fairer sex. But when Walter insisted he needed to start repair some of the damage to the Queen name outside of the business arena, Oliver decided to tackle it like any other business negotiation. However that particular venture died quickly. Those adventurous, or he should say, enterprising women, did not last long. His money and his power was extremely attractive, however he was under no illusion he was. And while these women had endured all sorts of defects to achieve their goals for a comfortable life, as soon as his full scars were exposed, not even the Queen fortune was enough to keep them.

Not that he had wanted them. He wasn’t desperate.

Only lonely, he thought, and shook his head.

“Everything okay?” Felicity’s attention was finally solely on him. Oliver wanted to curse. Great, she pays attention to him when he was in the middle of a pity party.

“Of course.” He said and thought of something to distract her perceptive eyes, “Do you want to look at the roses more closely? They have been here for several decades.” She graced him with a wide smile and then in that disarming way of her, she looped her hands around his left arm and said, “Lead the way!”

Shock and pleasure ricocheted from the spot of her embrace. He didn’t think, just placed his right hand over her, enjoying the sparking underneath where their skin touched.

Felicity tensed and looked at him, started. Had she not noticed what she had done, or was she surprised he touched her back? Either way, she didn’t pull alway and when he started to lead them deeper into the crowded rose garden, Felicity wrapped her arms around his more tightly until he could feel the full lengthen of her side pressed against him. 

The air was pregnant with the lush scents of the dozen varieties of roses housed in the garden. 

“This is amazing, Oliver.” Her voice held the awe her words conveyed. He looked down and saw she was busy moving her head all around trying to taking in the splendor. He always had soft spot for this place. When he was a boy, he often spend hours playing in the garden, helping his mother tend the beds and the bushes. Later, when he was older, it was a hideaway to bring his dates during parties, but now it was his sanctuary. Thea never came here, saying she hated all the thorns, but Oliver also suspected the memories also hurt just as much.This was the place he came to to feel closer to his mother, to tend to her roses, a very small measure of atonement.

Without realizing it, he had brought Felicity here. She was the first person in years to enter besides him and Jamie the gardener. He felt lightheaded and blamed it on the heavy perfume in the air.

But then Felicity pressed herself more against his side, and he noticed he was unconsciously rubbing his thumb over her knuckles. A wave of vertigo hit him hard, his head spun making him feel as if he was in a free fall.

Felicity’s grip tightened, “Oliver?” Her voice concerned, her gaze, worried and wide. He wanted to take his hand and stroke her cheek, smooth out the crease marring her prefect forehead. The desire to do so was so strong, Oliver actually took a step back.

“I am fine. I am sorry.” She didn’t look completely convicted, but didn’t protest when he pulled her further into the garden and motioned to a bench and table in the center of the space. 

Felicity sat down next to him, taking in it all in.

“This place.” The words were hushed like a secret.

A wave of peace and happiness washed over him. He understood what she was feeling. There was a special quality to this place. If he believed in magic, this is what it would feel like.

“How could you?” She asked, her voice still low and soft. Oliver frowned in confusion.

“How could I what?”

A light smile pulled on her lips, but it held a tinge of something else, “How could you spend all your time at work when you have a place like this? How could you not want to live here?”

Her expression, reminded him of her face when she first saw the library, a mixture of amazement and joy, but this time, it held a small measure of sadness.

“Do you like roses, Felicity?” The question came unbidden and Oliver was surprised by her sharp intake of breath.

“Yes and no.” She fell silent again, taking in a deep breath of air, her eyes still somber and so unlike the ball of engry he was used to.

This stillness inside her was new and it concerned him. What had made her melancholy? Felicity was so normally open , talking enough for everyone around her, but right now only silence filled the minutes between them. Should he speak? Oliver wondered. But as he looked down her and watched as her eyes remained unfocused, he knew she was remembering something beyond this place, lost in her thoughts.

He could have asked, could have pressed, but there seemed to be a fragile thing handing between them, like a single spider’s thread and if he spoke, the moment would snap and she would hide behind her cheerful mask.

Oliver did not want her to hide. Instead, they sat in the middle of the rose garden, watching the afternoon pass them by.

  


When they returned to the kitchen, it was well past three in the afternoon. Felicity had snapped back to the present when her stomach unexpectedly rumbled and she jumped in surprise. She laughed, embarrassment coloring her face and Oliver had only smiled, “I still owe you a lunch. “ 

She grinned. They had started to walk back, but Oliver had not missed the fact, her hands were still looped around his arm and his hand still rested on hers. When the reached the French doors of the kitchen, the broke away, the loss of her warmth next to him dimmed his good humor. He stalked up to the refrigerator and opened it. Numerous containers presented themselves to him, but he didn’t know what Felicity would like to try. Maybe he should ask Raisa to come in and make something?

A slender hand came into his view and Felicity peered into the refrigerator. 

“Oh score! There is leftovers from the pasta last night!” She pulled the container out and displayed it to him.

“Looks like it is enough for both of us, want it?” Oliver could only blink and gave a slight nod. Felicity flashed him a bright smile. 

“Great! Why don’t you get the dishes and I will get us some bread. I saw some salad, want that as well?” 

“Sure.” He said, still standing as she closed the door. Then like the Felicity he was used to, she zipped from one end of the room to another, collecting items and then placing them on the island. Oliver grabbed two plates and when he started to head to the dining room, Felicity stopped him.

“No, why don’t we eat here.” She bit her lip, and her face was flushed again as if uncertain about the request. 

“Does the dining room bother you?” 

“No, “ she halted, and then shrugged, laughing a little, “It is just too,” she gestured with her hands made swirling motions in the air, “Much. Can’t we just eat here.”

He looked at her. In the late afternoon light, her hair looked a darker shade of gold, her eyes big behind her glasses. It made her look young and he was reminded again how petite Felicity actually was. Most of the time she was a force of nature, strong and impossible to ignore. But today.

She was different.

Oliver looked at the island and she had arranged the small salad, a long piece of French bread and the warmed pasta. The stools were close together on the island. The warmth from the afternoon made the kitchen feel cozy and intimate. Oliver thought of the stiff dining room with its tall chairs, all elegant with a great deal of space between them.

Oliver slide into the stool at the corner of the island. She smiled and sat down.

He watched her scoop up the pasta and serve them both. Oliver placed his forearm on the counter and leaned in taking up the fork. 

Felicity gave him a sweet smile and scooted her stool closer to the edge and the rest of the meal. “Dig in.” She said.

Oliver grinned and loaded his fork.

When he took a bite, Felicity offered him a piece of bread. He took it and thanked her. Felicity’s smile widen and she popped a bite with a happy expression. 

Oliver enjoyed the impromptu meal immensely, reveling in the the simple pleasure of an unassuming lunch, with a remarkable woman.

Unbelievable as it seemed, somehow, this incredibility intelligent, refreshing honest, beautiful woman was sitting next to him and did it because it seem as if she wanted to be there.

It wasn’t until Felicity mentioned about getting a piece of Raisa’s key lime pie, did Oliver noticed something.

When he reached over to take his piece from her and his shirt pulled back did he notice the puckered skin peaking out. 

Oliver blinked for a moment.

Then he realized for the last hour, one glorious hour, Oliver actually forgotten about his scars.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR THE FLOOD OF FANTASTIC COMMENTS AND KUDOS. You all can't see me, but I have been in a state of pure writing bliss and grinning like a deranged idiot since the last chapter. Every single one of you are wonderful and thank you all so much for letting me know how much you have enjoyed this story. I never expected this kind of response and receiving all your thoughts after each chapter really help keep me going and writing more. 
> 
> Good news! I finished this week's prompt ON TIME.  
> Bad news-I am now officially caught up to the Flash Fiction prompts and updates will be each week. This two chapters in one week will most likely never happen again, so please do not be mad! *Ducks*
> 
> Either way, as a thank you, I purposely made this chapter a little longer. I hope you enjoy and again THANK YOU ALL FOR READING!


	8. That Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity and John give Oliver some news. Oliver and Felicity talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FF#19 -That Night. This chapter has been written for a few days. I just had to add a couple more lines to it before I could edit and post. Sorry for the delay. As always thank you all so very much for reading!

The next two weeks continued without incident. Only thing Oliver knew for sure was his sister’s nerves were wearing thin and his own weren’t faring any better.

It all came to a head a few days before Thea’s eighteenth.

“Why haven’t we found them yet?” He growled at John and Felicity in the library after dinner. John crossed his arms and glowered back at Oliver, “Because we haven’t found a damn thing.” John nudged his head towards Felicity and continued, “We have reviewed everyone in your employee, went through all their data and financials. We have placed tracking systems on every single one of your security staff and their known associates. Nothing has happened because we haven’t found even a whisper of Isabel and Helena. “

Felicity cleared her throat and looked decidedly uncomfortable. Oliver felt some hesitation because her expression was so alien from her usual brass confidence.

“What is it?” Oliver snapped. He wanted to smack himself when he saw her flinch a little behind her glasses. She wet her lips, “Oliver. I don’t think they are the ones in involved with Thea. Actually. “ Felicity shared a glance with John, “We don’t think there has been any attempts to communicate with anyone or create a kidnapping plot to get Thea. “

Oliver crossed his own arms, “There were email threats before Thea was almost taken at that party. Helena was released only three months before. The shares are live when Thea turns eighteen These are not coincidences.”

At that, Felicity came around the desk and leaned on the edge looking up at him, “I checked those emails, you know that. Richard Dobbs is unstable, and blames your father for firing him, but he is right now in county jail and basically harmless. So far, that is the only thing we have been able to figure out. Do you think it’s possible that you may be a little overzealous?”

Oliver scowed down at her and said in a thin, low voice, “Are you saying I am being paranoid? I am not prone to paranoia, _Miss Smoak._ "  


She flinched again at the sound of his formal use of her name. “This is Thea. We understand. It’s not some business deal gone wrong. This is nothing wrong in what you did, but there is nothing here. We have searched and there is nothing.”

“You are wrong! You aren’t looking hard enough!” Oliver roared at her.

“All right.” John interjected, “Let’s calm down here.”

The big man moved and intersected himself between Oliver and Felicity, who took the cue and returned back to her laptop.

She wouldn’t look at Oliver.

A horrible, twisting numbness gnawed on Oliver’s insides.

 

She had left soon afterwards, retiring into her room, but not because he screamed at her. No, he had screamed before, but it had been a while and she had forgotten how furious he could be, how sharp his tongue could cut when she wasn’t prepared.

Felicity placed the laptop on the desk and popped down on the bed. The lovely arches in the room, artfully moved upwards into the ceiling, creating dips and alcoves of shadows.

Felicity let out a sigh and wished it didn’t sound as weary as she felt. The last few weeks had been exhausting. She had spent all of her time working on uncovering something for Oliver, for Thea, that her head had been in a consistent state of exhaustion. Her head hurt. And nothing, absolutely nothing had come out this little trip down the rabbit hole.

Except for maybe meeting the Queens, living with them for a while, becoming friends with both of them, would have been the only benefits.

That and the bed. Felicity hugged one of the pillows. She could marry this bed. It was heavenly.

Though, going back to her last thought, being friends with Oliver was vastly different than being friends with Thea. One reason being pretty obvious, but the others, the others were the ones which had been keeping Felicity up at odd hours in the night since he had shown her the rose garden for the first time.

He didn’t know it, but since then, Felicity often found herself wandering into the garden during the day, and one time late at night when she couldn’t sleep.

The first time she had been there, she hadn’t noticed, being so overwhelmed by the flowers and memories, that the massive fountain in the center escaped her notice.

That night when she had gone, it had been on, and the soft light from inside the base illuminated a water nymph, swirling upwards from a wave, her arm outstretched to the sky.

There was something about the statue, the woman’s face in a frozen expression of equal measure desperation and joy held Felicity captivated.

Fitting she thought, walking around it, since Felicity felt like the nymph, terrified and exhilarated all at the same time. She sat down on the bench she and Oliver had shared not to long ago. Somehow in the very short time of their acquaintance, he had started to matter.

Not as a client, or a person, or an interesting man. But as a friend. As someone she looked forward to seeing, to speaking to, to just being around.

And in this garden with all its amazing flowers, Felicity remembered how much her mother used to love roses and how her father would always bring her a new bunch just as the previous ones would wilt. Vegas was great for fantasies, but it sucked to grow flowers.

Except after her father died, her mother never bought them again.

A knock on the door broke her reverie, Felicity turned her head, “Oliver?”

His head hung down a little and his right hand rested on the door frame. At the sound of his name, he looked at her. The frown on his face pulled down on his scarred side. His eyes were lost in the shadows and she couldn’t read them.

“Felicity, I'm sorry.” His voice was low and sincere. She sat up. At the motion, he said, “May I?”

She nodded and he walked over to her and sat down next to her. His hand rested next to hers but he stared down at the floor when he spoke again, “I'm sorry I lashed out at you.”

Part of her could have given him a break, but most of her was still hurt by the idea he thought they were not working hard enough to help give him and his sister some peace.

She reached out and touched the left side of his face, pushing his face up so he had to look at her. He did, but whatever she was going to say died in her throat.

She was touching his burnt side and his eyes glittered with something wild and fierce in them because even though he was looking at her, she hadn’t dropped her hand. She didn’t want to let go.

“Oliver,” She said, her voice low, “This isn’t just a job to me. Thea matters.” _You matter_. Felicity swallowed, her mouth suddenly very dry.

His intense gaze didn’t waver.

“I promise you, I, we, are doing everything we can to make sure she is safe.”

Oliver said nothing, but he continued to look at her. Felicity started to slide her hand off his face, but his own left hand caught hers before it left his skin. The combined pressure of it and the heat from his face and palm seared her. Her heart jackhammered hard against her chest.

“I know.” He whispered, his eyes glittering in the dim light in the room, his other hand anchored on the bed. She could see him tilt towards her, his gaze flickering down to her lips, her breath catching in her throat.

Oliver was a fraction from her, inching towards her so slowly, that a single move on her part would have shattered his progress.

She held her breath.

The feathery touch of his breath caressed her face.

Then she felt his lips on hers.

 

She tasted like the strawberry shortcake from dinner and a little of wine and completely _Felicity_. Her lips were full and soft and divine under his. He leaned in a little closer to her, his hand still on hers, but he pilled it from his face and tugged her towards him.

She came to him willing, and that artless willingness made him groan as the kiss continued. He felt her move her other hand grab onto his forearm. He tensed, thinking she was going to pull away, but he felt her arch into him. She had used his other arm as an anchor and that thought and the feel of her around him bombard his senses until he felt like he was drowning. His heart pounded against’ his chest and desire exploded inside him. The rush of adrenaline and lust was so unexpected he pulled away from the kiss, his breaths coming out in ragged puffs.

Felicity bend her own head, and he should see her trying to gain control as well.

She recovered first, he heard she let out a little strangled laugh, “That is one way to end a conversation,” she muttered.

He let out small snicker and even though he was pressing his luck and he shouldn’t invade her personal space anymore than he already had, Oliver couldn’t help himself.

He kissed the top of her bowed head. Felicity just snuggled into his embrace and he closed his arms around her further, revealing in the warmth of her small body against his.

Oliver felt her hands pay with the button on his dress shirt. He could hear her flicking her nail back and forth on it. Was she upset? No, it hadn’t felt that way and if she had been repulsed, he sure as hell wouldn’t be holding right now.

“Felicity.”

“Um?” More fidgeting.

“Are you okay?” He wanted to crawl into a hole. He sounded like a child. But her silence after such an, _earth-shattering was over used but accurate in his current mental state_ , event, that he expected her to say something about it.

Oliver felt her let out a sigh, a fraction of her breath burrowing into the gap between buttons. He tensed.

“Just realized something,” she said, her voice forlorn.

She pulled away then and looked at him.

Her lips looked wonderful, some of that ever present lipstick was gone, and their natural pink hue came through. They also looked throughly kissed.

One side curled into a smile, “You know my eyes are further up, right?”

Oliver shot his eyes up, he answered in kind with a grin. “Yes, had to admire the view for a moment.”

She laughed and he delighted in the blush creeping up her neck. Then she closed her eyes and shook her head.

“Stop trying to distract me. What I was trying to say is that now we have told you about our findings,” She stopped trailing off, her eyes growing very serious and sad behind her glasses. Worry clawed inside Oliver.

“What about them?” But Oliver could start to see where this was going and what she said next shouldn’t have surprised him, but still felt like a heavy lead ball slamming in the center of his stomach.

“We are done. John, Roy and I will be leaving tomorrow.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOPE YOU ALL LIKED IT! I wasn't expecting the kiss, but Oliver isn't one to sit around. Again, thank you all so VERY much for all your encouragement, comments and kudos! They really mean a great deal!


	9. Dare You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> #Prompt 20-Truth or Dare
> 
> Both Oliver and Felicity think about the kiss. Oliver makes a surprise visit.

The dull thud of her suitcase sounded as sad as she felt.

Felicity surveyed the hallway of her townhouse, taking in the faint coating of dust on the hallway table, on the framed art...on her heart.

She felt like this place-disconnected and a just a little out of time and place. Her place felt cold and she couldn’t help the shiver leaving goosebumps in its wake.

Shivering, Felicity shook her head, _Get a grip, Felicity. It hasn’t been like you been gone for months._

And yet, as she walked into her kitchen and observed her familiar surroundings, it felt so alien.

So small.

So lonely.

They had left Oliver’s home only that morning and John had insisted they wrap up at the office.  After reports and final checks, the day was spent without much time to reflect.

Oliver hadn’t seen them off.

Not that she really had expected him to, especially after she told him the night before he conveniently disappeared before she could discuss another rather important matter.

His kiss.

But instead her last image of Oliver Jonas Queen was the taunt, long lines of his retreating back and the lingering feel of his lips on her.

A hard, sharp stab of misery shot through her. A sigh escaped her, and it grew into a desolate moan when she opened her refrigerator and saw nothing edible.

She had forgotten.  

There was nothing here.  Just a shell of a house and no one here to make sure she had some milk to help her sleep.

A hot tear leaked.

She didn’t even bother to wipe it away.

“You know, standing here isn’t going to bring her back.” Thea’s voice waffled behind him, along with the sound of a loud crunch.  He turned and saw his sister munching on an apple and leaning against the wall.  Over the last few weeks, Thea had mellowed out considerably. Between her training with Roy and their more frank conversations since that night in the gym, having Thea around has been a pleasure.

Except for this one moment, when she decided to give him a taste of his own medicine and smirk at him as if all the answers to the universe lied in her brain.

When he said nothing, she look another big bite from the apple, and chew it, the look on her face told him she was more than willing to stand there all day if needed.

He wanted to growl, to snap, to tell her she was delusional, but it didn’t change the fact he kept finding himself at the threshold of Felicity’s former bedroom.

It was ridiculous.

But for the last four days, he kept walking here before going to work, before going to bed, his feet hovering right at the edge of the room as if he crossed it, he would be transported.

And she would be here, sitting at the desk with her knee up to her chest, talking about lonely furniture.

A gnawing feeling ate at his gut. An all too familiar feeling, but this time, it burned and seared worse than the usual rot of his soul.

Because that regeat, was a dull, everlasting ache.  But the kind left in Felicity’s wake made his stomach clench and made him spend hours in the library staring at fires thinking of kisses. Delicious, amazing, kisses made of sunshine and heat and strawberries.

And then she spoke and it all shattered.

And like a coward, he ran as far as his long legs could take him. And he was even a bigger coward the following day when he convinced himself he had to be at work by seven in the morning, instead of staying to send them off.

“I mean, if I were you. I would think it might be a good idea to ask her to be your date.” Another loud crunch.

Oliver blinked, returning to the present. He scowled at his sister, “What?”

Thea looked at him with big innocent eyes. Uh oh, Oliver thought, knowing that particular look never ended well.  Thea ignored him and waved what was left of the apple in the air, “I mean my party tomorrow night. The one you are giving me as a HUGE apology for keeping me captive for the last three weeks.  Why don't you invite her? I miss her.”

Some of Thea’s mischief dimmed in her eyes and Oliver noticed the faint sheen of sadness.

_I do too_

Oliver opened his mouth to tell Thea that Felicity had been an employee, that it wouldn’t be appropriate to invite her to a family function.

Hadn’t stopped you from kissing her, reminded his conscious

Oliver frown, but it only deepened when he heard himself say, “Okay.”

“Blondie? You okay? You have been starting at the screen for ten minutes.”

Felicity snapped her head back towards the voice and noticed Roy standing over in his full red gear.  Humor laced his features but she could see the concern underneath.  

She laughed , “I’m fine, just thinking of a particularly difficult code, you know, sometimes you need to really focus and try to take it apart to figure it out.”

Incredulity settled on his face, sarcasm dripping from his words, “Uh ha. Okay then. I am heading out. Are you ready?”  

Felicity nodded, redirecting her attention to the monitors.  When they first started this little side adventure, they had used the offices for it, but as it expanded and became a more formal operation, John moved them to the basement of the building.  

“John?” Felicity asked over the comms, “Roy is heading out, are you in position?”

“Yes.” Came back the disembodied voice.

Roy gave her a nod and headed out of the basement.

After the door closed, Felicity gave herself a couple of minutes setting up her systems, knowing it would take Roy about ten to get to John’s location.  Tonight they were tracking a possible vertigo supplier.  It had been the same drug Thea had been exposed to when Roy first met her and ever since all their free time had been taken up by the Queens, they hadn’t been able to investigate deeper who was making and distribution the designer drug.

Thinking of Thea, inadvertently lead her thoughts to stray to Oliver.

But who was she kidding? thought Felicity. Despite her best efforts, her thoughts naturally drifted back to Oliver. Drifted back to the kiss, to the soft feel of his lips under her. The way his hand had gripped her waist, the feel of his chest, his strong body pressed against her.

And then he just let her walk out without even another word.

Idiot.

And she had been a bigger idiot over the last four days because she would just keep checking her phone, her email, even her stupid facebook status, waiting to see if he would do something, anything to reach out to her.

Nothing.

The idiot did nothing. But even though it hurt, even though rationally, she knew she should bury whatever she liked about him and whatever was shared, she couldn’t seem to let it go.

 _You are the bigger idiot_ , her brain sneered.

She let out a sigh into the empty room. “Yeah, I know.”

The hours passed and while the boys were able to shake some leads none of them could be followed tonight.  John went home and Roy mentioned having a date, with an embarrassed mutter.  Felicity was so shocked to see his sheepish expression she didn’t have a chance to properly rib him about it before he disappeared.

The lair, as she so affectionately called it, felt big and cold and scary without everyone here.

 _Ugh,_ she thought, _Get a grip Felicity._

She left and was determined to order some food, find a plot-hole-riddled flick with plenty of action and big biceps.  All in all, it was a good plan.  She got home, ordered the pizza, settled on an appropriate film and popped open a bottle of red wine.  She was in mid-sip when the doorbell rang.

“Coming!” she placed the wine glass down, ready to give the pizza boy a tip when she opened the door.

On the other end of her doorway, stood Oliver.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Coughs* Well that was embarrassing! Thank you so much Kiera for letting me know. Somehow my unedited version stayed on the clipboard. Soooo SORRY! The corrected version is now up. Thanks again, and going to crawl under a rock for a bit!
> 
> Thank you, thank you, thank you all for you patience! I am so far behind comments! I am sorry I haven't responded back yet, but I promise I will. Each and every one of them is read and makes my heart so happy! I hope you enjoy the latest chapter. I had this written for a few days but hadn't had the time to edit and post. Forgive!


	10. Three Reasons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver comes over to ask Felicity a question.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for your patience . I am really sorry for the delay in the update. Real life has been a bear and has required all my extra time. I tried to make this chapter a longer than usual as an apology and as a thank you for sticking with it! There will be a few more chapters after this but we are getting closer to the end. I will use a couple of the first prompts to round out the story. Thanks for reading and enjoy.

“Oliver?”

She wasn’t sure why it came out as a question, since it was obviously him standing right outside of her door. But a part of her, more than just a small part, believed he was just a figment of her overactive imagination which had somehow manifested into a solid looking hallucination.

A very nervous hallucination.

Much like that first night in the library, he had come to her wearing a white t-shirt, but this time with a leather jacket over it. But she still could see the trail of his scars crawling up his neck and onto his face. His eyes roved over her and then he licked his lips.

Any thoughts she had evaporated at the sight of his tongue wetting his mouth.

“Hello, Felicity.” He said, his voice smooth and soft but underneath it Felicity could vaguely hear a hint of trepidation.

That hint jarred her out of her haze and she blinked, “Oh, hey,” She blushed and busied her empty hand by pushing stray strands of hair back, she opened the door wider and said, “Sorry, come in, come in.”

His face lighten for a moment and he gave her a sheepish smile as he walked into her townhouse.

Before that moment, Felicity always thought her house was cosy and cute. Not too big, not too small, but with Oliver now looming in the foyer, his tall head barely underneath the ceiling, it felt small, _so very small_.

She took a step back to make room for him and felt the hard post of her staircase press into her back as she looked up at him.

“What are you doing here?” She gripped the post behind her as if it would help steady her.

Amusement lit his blue eyes and a small, tentative smile tugged at his lips, “I came to see you. I wanted to ask you something.”

Her heart thundered in her chest, but she hoped her voice sounded as calm to him when she said, “You have my number. No need for the house visit.” A shadow crossed his face and Felicity could almost hear him thinking coming to see her was a bad idea. “No, no,” She said, waving her hands in the air as if to dispel the idea from his mind. “I didn’t mean for that to come out so harsh, I’m just surprised to see you.”

She took in a deep breath, hoping he couldn’t see how rattled she was at him showing up at her doorstep unannounced. Thankfully the universe took pity on her and a knock sounded through the charged silence.

“Pizza!” She said, welcoming the distraction with a bright smile.

“Why don’t you have a seat in the living room. I will be right there.” She touched his arm and gave a little push to the left. He only gave her a bemused look but went through the arch into the small living room.

She paid the delivery guy and rushed into the kitchen. _Plates, plates, she needed plates_ , even though who knew if he was going to eat anything. Did Oliver eat pizza? Somehow the image of him sloshing on her sofa, arm thrown over her shoulder while they were munching on dinner, didn’t seem as ridiculous as it should have.

Actually, the whole image made something warm and fluttery skip around her stomach, making her nervous and excited all at once.

When she stumbled back into the living room, he was sitting on her beige sofa, looking around the room.

She put the food and plates down and watched as his gaze locked on the single glass of wine.

“Want some?” She pointed to the pizza.  He gave her that soft smile again and she felt her insides jump.

“Sure.” He was reaching over to open the pizza box when she gave his hand a playful tap. Oliver shot his hand back as if she had zapped him.

“Hold your horses there, this is a pie from Mike’s and must be handled with care.” She turned it towards her and opened the box to reveal a hot, delicious New York style pizza with the works.

Felicity started cutting up the slices and placing them on the plates when she eyed him under her eyelashes.  The jacket bothered her. It wasn’t overly warm in her townhouse, but seeing it on him made her sweat just thinking of how he was feeling.

Of course it had nothing to do with wanting to see him just in a T-shirt. _No, nothing at all._

Her mouth decided to act before her brain could stop her, “I would take off the jacket. The sauce is hell on leather.”

His eyes sparked at her words and Felicity would have died to know what just went through his brain.  She could see an internal debate going on his face, but he quickly came to a decision and shrugged the brown jacket off.  

Felicity took in a breath and tried to control herself, but in the library that night, with sleep eating away at her senses, she hadn’t fully appreciated the glory that was Oliver Queen in a short sleeve shirt.  The fabric as cotton and fine and oh so close to his body. A body which she had only briefly touched when they had kissed.

A kiss which had left her in a mental fog for days and now here he was sitting on her sofa and with slices of pizza and the tension thickening between them.

The scars, which she had noticed that night, where now clear and visible instead of dimmed in the firelight.  It should have made him look maimed. He should have looked weak, but instead seeing them on his skin, watching as they trailed up his neck and merge with his face, gave him a wild aura of power and strength.

Oliver Queen was a survivor.

And here now, him taking off that jacket, exposing another fraction of himself to her and something dark and primal pumped hard inside her.  Images flooded her mind of her crawling over to the sofa, leaning into his body, pressing her self firm against him, all the while her hands would reach down and tug on-

“Felicity?”

Felicity blinked, not realizing she was still holding on the plate she had held out for him.  She pulled away, feeling her cheeks burn and was about to make a joke when she looked up and her eyes caught his.

Breath seized in her lungs.  She had heard of the term ‘smolder’ before; even thought she had seen it in movies and from past boyfriends. However, Felicity Smoak was a woman of facts and the look Oliver Queen was giving her made all those past experiences tepid. It actually turned his clear blue eyes, into dark storms of cobalt. Her heart thundered in response and she felt as if he would leap from the sofa and start to devour her one delicious inch at a time.

The thought of his mouth on her skin caused an involuntary soft groan to escape her lips.

Oliver snapped.

He shoved the plate on her end table and without another word, stood up and reached for her by her biceps and pulled her up towards him.

She didn’t think. Couldn’t think. Only let the heat pulse through her. Oliver pressed her against him, and she could feel his body through the thin fabric of his shirt and her own worn tee. Anticipation drummed under her skin and when she looked up at him, seeing her own need mirrored in his eyes, she almost laughed as his wonderful lips closed the distance and seared themselves on her own.

Heaven.

Hell.

_Heavenly hell._

Because he had thought she had been sweet before. Like nectar, like strawberries.

Not _this_ Felicity.

 _That_ Felicity had been taken by surprise, or nervous about a first kiss.

 _This_ Felicity took exactly two seconds of stillness and then she erupted.  She pulled her arms out of his grasp, and her hands buried themselves behind his neck, scraping the back of his head with her nails. She pressed him closer to him and opened her mouth to his searching tongue.   He gripped her hips and pressed her hard against him. She groaned into the kiss and something broke his reason.

His whole body hum in sensations.

He broke off the kiss and when she gave a little whine at the loss of contact, he felt a wicked smile grace his lips. Dark, hot pleasure eradicated any thoughts in his mind.

Oliver only felt. Felt her pulse skittering under his mouth, felt the rapid rise and fall of her chest. Tasted her sweet, silk skin under his mouth and when he bit her ever so gently at the junction of her neck and shoulder, Felicity pulled on his face, ripping his lips from her.

“Oliver.” She said, her voice low and husky. Her naturally warm blue eyes, now looked almost black.

He looked down, ready to dive back down when he saw her scowl. A few moments before that look would have had turned his blood to ice, but now, now he was only running on instincts and all of his instincts were demanded he push away her hands and start to make a trail from her collarbone down her shirt.

“Yes?” The question came out almost like an afterthought as his right hand moved from her hip, up her side and touched the side of her neck he had just been kissing.

Felicity closed her eyes and swallowed, but he did not miss the low moan escaping her at his touch.

Watching her response was one of the most erotic things he had ever seen. Felicity hid nothing.

“Oliver?” Her voice cracked and the last part of his name melted into a groan when he nipped the sweet skin under her jaw.  Her hands moved down to his shoulders.

She pushed back on them, forcing his lips away from her neck.  

Oliver blinked, the hot haze still burning inside.  Dazed, he looked at her, confused and a little annoyed. Her neck, her lips, her jaw all called to him and all the wonderful places they lead to as well.  But some of his ardor diminished when he saw her expression, a curious mix of frustration, lust, and concern.

“What’s wrong?” He kept her pressed to him, rubbing her arms with his hands. Felicity's eyes closed and she swallowed, then she opened them, her blue eyes were serious.

“Why did you come to see me? What did you have to ask me?”  For a few seconds the words did not make sense, and the idea of what had brought him to her door only a mere ten minutes before seemed so far away.  

“I came because,” the usual excuses all floated in his mind: Thea wanting to invite her to the party. Because it would be a good way for her to check on the upgraded systems during the event. Because he needed a plus one and didn’t want to deal with his sister or assistant trying to arrange a meeting with another potential romantic failure.

All of them had offered a measure of self preservation when the inevitable look of disgust reached her eyes, when the obvious interest in her wasn’t returned. But looking at her clear, blue eyes, her slight tremor in her body, her lips full and swollen from his kisses, Oliver felt for the first time in years, like himself, whole, but _so much more_ than the little selfish brat he once had been. He felt like a man standing in front of a woman he wanted to be with more than breath itself.

Excuses were useless.

“I came because of three reasons,” He stared again, placing a soft kiss on her lips, “I missed you." Her eyes shuttered close, he proceeded to leave a trail of kisses on her jaw down towards her ear, where he whispered,"I wanted to know if you would accompany me to a party I am hosting for Thea tomorrow night?"  She hummed deep in her throat and when his teeth tugged on her earlobe, she gripped his shoulders.  Then he said, his voice low and hot in her ear, "And I wanted to know if you would like to see the rose garden at night?”

He pulled back to see her reaction. She stood there as a wonder. Flesh and dream all rolled into one. Her chest rose and fell in a rapid succession and she only stared at him, her blatant need, and something even more infinitely precious blazing in her eyes. Felicity Smoak, the woman who always seemed to have to word for everything, was struck speechless.

She blinked several times as if trying to clear her vision. When she spoke, it cracked a little, “Like a date, date?”

A smile bloomed on his face, and he chuckled, kissing her temple.  

“Yes, a date, date.”

Again, her face showed everything and delight lit her within, she gave him a wicked little smile and wrapped her arms around his neck and her nails bit into the back of his hair, pushing his lips to hers.

“Good.” She answered into their kiss, before all words were lost.


	11. Into the Wild

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oliver comes to a decision and Felicity goes to a party.

In the end, Oliver stopped it. The feeling of her in his arms, the light floral scent coming from her skin, enveloped his senses, and for a brief wonderful moment, Oliver had a flash of him taking off her top and scooping her up and walking upstairs.

Then it crashed into him.  That is something the old him would have done. Ollie would have not hesitated and then in the morning the asshole would have been up before dawn to sneak out of the house.

Felicity was not a one night stand and making love to her right now, even as much as he _wanted_ to, was not what he really _needed_ to do.  He _needed_ to date her, he _needed_ her to get to know him, really  know him and not as Oliver Queen, CEO or Oliver Queen, fire survivor, but just Oliver. He also _needed_ to show her how much she meant to him, which would be to do the exact opposite of what he did in the past with his meaningless flings.

With a groan, he pulled his lips away and rested his head on her forehead with his eyes closed.  He could hear her small pants and the warmth of her breath fluttered across his face.  Oliver gritted his teeth, praying for a well of willpower because if she moved one way, if she touched him just there, Oliver didn’t know if he could stop.  He took in a deep breath to try to steady himself and he could almost feel the unasked questions hovering all around him.  He smiled, straightened his head and looked at her.  Her lips were swollen and her blue eyes heavy.  God, he just wanted to dip down and have one more kiss but he also knew if he did that, he wasn’t leaving this house and she wasn’t staying dressed much longer.

He stroked her arms because he needed to feel her, even if he couldn’t kiss her.

“Felicity.” He said, his voice came out low and rough. “I want to do this right.” Her eyes grew wide and uncertainly colored them.  

“Sex? I mean I don’t know about you, it is been a while for me, but I still know…” Oliver bursted into laughter, feeling so full of emotion that he could not contain it.

“No, I meant this.” He motioned with his fingers between the both of them.  Understanding flickered in and her mouth made an adorable ‘o’.

He could feel the smile on his face and hoped he didn’t look like an grinning idiot, but then decided he didn’t freaking care. Not when she was looking at him with those eyes and her flushed face and her kissed lips.  

“I want to date you.”

Felicity let out a breath, “Oliver you already asked me to be your date tomorrow night.”

He shook his head, “No, I asked you on our first date.  I am saying I want many more after and for that to happen, I am going to go now.”

Before she could say a word, Oliver caved into temptation, gave her one hard, swift kiss, grabbed his jacket and walked out the door before he could think about what he was doing.

“Oliver!” Felicity yelled and he turned to see her standing by the doorway, the hallway light illuminated her form, a soft smile on her face, “Goodnight, I will see you tomorrow.”  Her smile grew wider and then she closed the door.

Oliver didn’t stop smiling, not even when he fell asleep to a blissful black sleep.

  


The next day, Felicity gnawed on a nail, while watching the computer screen.  Something about this wasn’t right, but she couldn’t see what it was causing her gut to clinch.  John and Roy were out trying to get some more information on the lead they got the night before.  It seemed that while Vertigo was being sold at different part of the Glades, there was a higher concentration of deals and incidents around the Verdant club.  Tommy Merlin wasn’t involved.  From the surveillance she can been able to tap into and his information, he was not being bribed or funding the operation. Which meant, there was someone else.  

And it also meant why she was now squinting on her computer screen trying to see anyone who may be acting out of place or consistently within the club.  She already cross referenced the employees and they were cleaned.  But something was off, she could feel it.  It was very similar to her while they were trying to help Oliver, but like then, she just kept turn rocks over and rock but couldn’t seem to find anything.

She groaned and shoved away from the computer.  A break. She needed a break from the screen and some time to think this through.  Even though nothing has come up concrete, Felicity just knew somehow Thea’s mugging was connected to the vertigo.  Though she felt Thea was just at the wrong place at the wrong time, there still was something Felicity was missing and it was driving her crazy.

She went to get some coffee and with a deep breath, sat down again to keep watching the video.

A few minutes in, she saw something. The current video was of three nights ago.  Felicity noticed a dark haired woman by the bar. Something about her was familiar but Felicity couldn’t quite place it.  

She took a shot of the woman’s face and started to run a scan.  The knot in her gut eased a little, and while the scan ran, she let her mind wander back to Oliver and her impending date tonight.  Flutters of him, his kiss, his face, his smile and what could happen tonight all gave her goosebumps.

Get a grip, Felicity!, but even scolding herself couldn’t damper the fever of excitement and anticipation burning through her.  

“Felicity,” John’s voice came over the comms.

She snapped to attention and focused on her computers, pressing her hand to the bluetooth receiver in her ears.

“What did you find?”  She asked, scanning the screens and noticing both John and Roy were on their way back to the lair.

John sighed into the comms, “Nothing much, but one of Roy’s old contacts was able to give us a name of a pusher working outside of the Glades.  Tends to have a higher class of clientele and he might give us some more information.  I am going to check it out. Roy is heading back, he has a date.” He said the last bit with a smile.

Felicity could hear Roy embarrassed grunt in the background. “Whatever, we can go together tomorrow John, you don’t need to see Rodgers on your own.”

“Naw, it is fine. Go.”

Roy didn’t have to be told twice and gave his thanks as he sped off in the other direction to his apartment to get ready for his hot date. A date that Felicity was coming to suspect was with the same girl as the night before.  Two nights in a row, that was pretty serious in Royland.

Date.

Oh crap, Felicity thought, looking down at her watch and noticing the time.  She was going to be late!

 

Felicity took in another deep breath for the uptenth time trying to settle her nerves.  The whole drive to Oliver’s house was surreal, his driver had arrived a couple of minutes after she had slipped on her shoes and before she think about it, she was in the car on the way.  It wasn’t until the familiar driveway came into view that the butterflies smashes all through her.  She kept trying to calm herself, but by the car turn to stop in front of the house, her heart was thundering in her ears. The door opened and she was helped out by a valet. Slow steps, left, right, left, right, she chanted to herself as she walked into the manor.  

It was amazing how much a house could change when it was dressed for a party.  People filled the house. Colors everywhere, large bouquets of flowers decorated the tables in the hallway and the long living room had been converted into a ballroom. Everything seemed the glow. Dancers twirled around, jewels flashed in the light and there he was.  Oliver stood near the french doors talking to a portly older gentleman.  The tux accentuated his long form. She could see from across the room that he was smiling, he nodded at the man and then looked in her direction.  

What little breath she had escaped her at the look in his eyes. His smile grew softer and he said something quickly to the man and started towards her.  He moved through the crowd, not taking his eyes off her. Then he was there, his tall form muting the lights.

“Hi,” he said, almost a whisper and for the first time in her life Felicity actually understood the sensation of the room fading away. It didn’t matter that a few hundred people were milling around her. It didn’t matter that a band was playing or the cacophony of the party should have drowned his greeting.

No, everything else blended into nothing and all she could see and hear was him.  She smiled back. “Hi.”

Oliver reached down with his burnt hand and said, “Let’s go somewhere where we can talk.” She nodded, letting him guide her through the throng of people towards the french door, outside and moving towards the rose garden.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you, thank you, thank you all for your infinite patience! Here is the next chapter. I DO have the other chapters outlined and am pushing to get them to you as soon as possible. I hope you enjoy.


	12. Game on

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity and Oliver have a moment. Felicity gets a call and Oliver has a drink.

Soft lights, sparkling like tiny fairies, lit the garden walkways.  Just like the first time he had brought her here, Felicity could not help herself from wrapping her arms around Oliver’s left arm, very much enjoying his warmth seeping through the silk of her dress.

The air slipped around them,infused with the scent of the roses as they drew closer to the now familiar iron arched gates.  They didn’t speak and Felicity could feel the nervous balls of energy swirling around, colliding around her body, making everything inside her feel like thousand points of light were bouncing underneath her skin.  Oliver’s hand, which hand been resting on hers, tightened for a moment and guided her in the garden

It struck her speechless.

The night she had wandered here after a restless sleep, the garden had been in a state of slumber, the only real source of illumination had been the nymph base , the track lights in the marble, pointed on the statue like lover hands, gently revealing her frozen form to the onlooker.

But tonight, tonight the garden was alive. Lights twinkled throughout and over head her, the roses seemed to love the new attention and were big and bright and open to the music and life.  Even the nymph, seemed more present in the space, her face, more ecstasy than desperation.  Felicity felt the weight of it all in the breaths she took and could just make out the scent of Oliver’s subtle cologne.  He walked them towards the bench and just like that first time, he sat her down.

Except this time he didn’t sit next to her without touching her.  This time, his hand moved down her bare arm and their fingers entwined.

His hand felt warm and big and everything inside her hummed under his touch. Deep inside her, the breath welled and it pushed out from her, and just like that, all her nerves, all her tension evaporated under his touch and she felt his calmness settle over her.  She closed her eyes and placed her head on his shoulder, and scooted in so she could feel his side pressed next to her.  

Seemed she had a problem. Could not seem to get enough touch this man. Ever since that night in the gym, she couldn't seem to stop herself from wanting to feel him and as as she looked up as his beautiful imperfect face, that it dawned on her with a small measure of awe that she now had permission to touch whenever she wanted.

A thrill shot through her and she let out a little gasp. Oliver looked down to her, and ran a finger from her forehead down to her lips, using the tips of one his fingers to gently caress her cheek.  The only sound she could hear was the thundering of her heart and the breath leaving his mouth.

“Felicity.” The way he said her name, both measure of awe and lust, inflamed all of her senses.  Nothing mattered than this moment, and the shadow of his face coming over hers and his lips pressed themselves on hers.

Again, it felt like lighting and delicious awareness sizzling through her and his other arm moved around her waist, bringing her closer to him. Felicity moaned a little into his mouth, overwhelmed by all the sensations bombarded her.  Thought wasn’t even possible, only the feel of him, the taste of him, the rustle of his hand fisting the fabric of her dress and pressing it firmly against the small of her back. Her own hands went everywhere. The top of his shoulders, the wonderful feel of his skin under her fingers, the taut lines of the muscles in his neck and back, the sheer, heady wonderful feeling of him all around.

She pulled away a moment , taking in a deep breath, feeling herself light and heavy all at once.

“Wow,” she muttered, and was a little startled when Oliver chuckled and tucked her under his chin. She felt the rumble of his amusement and happiness vibrating from his chest.

Good thing he wasn’t looking at her face and the noticing the flush of embarrassment, “Said it out loud didn’t I.” She let out a defeated sigh and he responded by tightening his hold, his breath fluttering the strands of her hair. She felt him kiss the top of her head.

“Never change, Felicity Meghan Smoak. You are perfect just as you are.”  

Now she laughed softly, snuggling into his warmth and just enjoying the moment.  It was strange that she wasn’t trying to cram as many words as possible especially since alone time was hard enough with a house full of servants and her working with overprotective brother figures, but she just felt so content, so full and empty at the same time, it seemed like a crime to cheapen the moment with forced conversation.

Oliver seemed to understand, because she felt his fingers lightly going up and down her back, awareness and desire leaving ghost trails behind.

She shivered.

“Cold?”, he asked. Felicity looked up and when his dark eyes met hers, she let out a scacco breath, “Far from it.”  She ran her fingers lightly on his lips, feeling him suck in a breath at the touch.

A buzzing hummed at her hip.  

Without taking his eyes off her, Oliver wrapped his hand around her wrist and held her hand  near his mouth, then his tongue peeked out and licked the tip of her index finger, bring it close to his lips where he started to kiss each of her fingers.

Felicity’s body seem to burn under his touch, the tension hot and tight in her core. So much so it seem like her body was vibrating.

Or was that just her hip?

She frowned, looking down and noticing a faint light coming from her purse. Her phone.  She had it on Do Not Disturb, which meant the caller was on the approved list. Which meant it was important.

“Something wrong?”  

“Don’t know actually,” she muttered, reaching into her purse trying to swallow the dread chilling the warmth she felt only a few seconds before.  Scenarios started to bombard through her head, those of John, Roy, Lyla, her mother.

John’s number blinked on the screen.

Felicity answered and put the phone to her ear. “John?”  

At first nothing, then a moan.

Panic swirled through her. “John, can you hear me? Are you okay?”

Only another moan.  

Oh god. He could be hurt. Dying. Where the hell was he?  Had that drug dealer done something? She had to find him.

She knew she must have looked crazy, or at least frantic,thoughts running through her mind. She needed Roy, needed her computer, her software. Her phone could give some information but…

Hands gripped her arms, “Felicity? What’s wrong?” She blinked, forgetting Oliver for a moment.

“It’s John.” The words squeezed out of throat. “I think he may be hurt. I have to go Oliver. I am so sorry-”

Concern etched themselves on his face, he rubbed the sides of her arms. Questions swirled in his eyes, but he said in a soft, firm voice, “Go. Find him.”

Relief and gratitude flooded her body.  She gave him a kiss on his scarred cheek.  

“Thank you,” her voice low and fierce.  

And without another word, she sprinted through the gates away from Oliver into the night.

 

* * *

 

Oliver started at the empty space on the bench for a while. Not sure how long, but the image of her scared face, her eyes wide made his gut clinch.  Worry gnawed in his stomach, a large part of him had wanted to tell her he wasn’t letting her go alone, that he would go with her, but he could see the unvoiced plea in her bright eyes, Please let me go. I have to do this alone. I am sorry.  Oliver knew John meant the world to her, and their relationship ran deep.  He was her second father and brother all rolled into one.

Even though it was killing him, thinking of her running off to who knows where to find him, Oliver knew it was selfish to hold her back, or to demand anything of her in this moment. Even if he thought it was in her best interests.

But like that last time they were in this garden together, he really understood that some things were not about him. And by letting her go, trusting her to be okay, not demanding to satisfy his _own_ needs, he was showing her how much he cared.

Her quick kiss still simmered on his ruined face.  He touched the spot and closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath.

“Hello Mr. Queen.” A woman’s voice cut through his thoughts.  Oliver opened his eyes and saw Miranda smiling at him, her silver dress accentuating, her tall figure and her dark, liquid black hair.  

“Here,” she handed him a champagne flute. “Thought you could use it.” Oliver let out a humorless laugh and took the glass.

“Thank you.” Oliver said, tipping the glass her way, and taking a small taste.  It held a citrus note, making it taste slightly sour.

Oliver grimaced and handed it back to Miranda, “Miranda, you need to speak to the caterer, this champagne tastes off and I don’t want it served to the guests.”

Miranda quirked her eyebrow at him, and drank the contents of her glass in one long swallow.  Then her smile, which only a moment before seems natural and familiar, turned cold, the lines of her lips, thinned out.

“I think it is just yours, Oliver.”

Oliver’s stomach turned, and a sharp pain seared in his gut.  He cried out and wrapped his arms around himself as if it would alleviate the burning inside his body. Sweat broke all over and his vision started to water.  

“What...why...who?” He croaked out him his swollen throat.

The smile turned even more vicious and the ghost of another woman superimposed on Miranda’s face.

“Helena?”  

"Close but not quite.”Miranda laughed. It sounded like steel being struck. Cold. Loud.

Shivers bombard Oliver’s body and he slumped off the bench and collapsed at the foot of the fountain.

Everything faded as darkness cloaked his vision.

 

 


	13. Too Far Too Fast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity finds Oliver

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N God, bless you all for your patience! I have had this chapter done for a few weeks, but needed to rewrite a section had just hadn't the time to do it! I am so sorry it has taken so long, but I am glad I finally can post this for you all. Thank you for all your comments and kudos, they mean the world--really!

Felicity stripped off her shoes and raced down the path trying to find John's GPS signal on her phone. The red light blinked on the road towards the Queen's mansion. Why was he there? What was going on?  She thought, switching to call Roy.

He picked up on the third ring.

"Felicity?"  The muted sounds of a club or party in the background.

That's right, Roy had been on a date tonight.

"Roy, John is in trouble. How fast can you get to the Queen's?" She scrabbled up the stairs towards the main  house ready to walk in when Roy asked, "Why are you there?'

"Oliver invited me to a party."

For a moment there was silence, then Roy said, "I am here. I am with Thea."

_Ahhh._

Later, when her blood returned to normal instead of this icy fear, she would have plenty to rib Roy about, but now her only thought went to the red dot blinking, unmoving  about a third of a mile from the house.

"Meet me outside, he signal is a little ways down the road."

She hung up before he could reply and worked her way through the crowd towards the front doors. Roy and Thea were waiting for her outside.

Concern colored Thea's eyes and expression, Felicity didn't miss how her elegant hands held Roy's arm.

"Use my car, " Thea said, handing Roy the keys.  "It will take the valets forever to get yours."

"Thank you, Thea." Felicity said, giving the younger girl a kiss on the cheek.

Roy gave Thea a quick kiss on her forehead and whispered something in her ear.Whatever he said made Thea blush lightly and she backed away from them.

"Go, call me when you find him."

Felicity and Roy nodded and raced to the car, ready to find their partner.

  


John Diggle was not a stupid man.  Regardless of his size and as Felicity would remark, his massive tree trunk arms, John Diggle preferred to thinking and find non-violent solutions to problems.  It was one of the reasons he had been such as successful commander in the army, and why he was damn good at his job.

However, tonight, as he sat stunned, with the feeling of blood trickling down his face and his body vibrating from the crash, he was pretty sure if he could, he would punch the crap out someone right now.

Rodgers hasn't offered more information on his source, but John was able to get Felicity a sample for analysis.  Maybe if they could find out how more on how it was made they could track down the manufacture.

Attempts to buy the drug before had been futile because of the fact the drug became neutralized in the bloodstream after the initial effects and despite its devastating effects, it was in limited supply.  Whoever was making this, was creating it in small batches, which could mean it is either really hard to produce, or they wanted to create a following before starting up the real distribution process.

Either scenario bothered him and with both Felicity and Roy out for the night and Lyla out of town with the kids, he decided to come up to Thea's party to kill two birds with one stone. Check on the Queens' and talk to Slade about some of the new security measures they were implementing at Queen Consolidated.

Then the brakes failed just as he was taking a curve up the hill to the mansion.

Not at this moment with his head throbbing and his mind fading in and out, but later, he would try to remember how it happened, and could only come up with the car suddenly swerving to his left, making his distracted mind react before his training could kick in.

Faint noise came from outside, pinpricks of light fractured through the broken glass. Then he could hear voices, one high, then one low, calling his name.

When his eyes opened again, Roy was checking his head, Felicity was next to him, "Does he need an ambulance? I should call one."

"No..o." John said, the word sounding as raw as he felt.  He motioned to Roy to help him out of the car, "Nothing broken. I am okay."

"But what if you have a concussion, internal injuries? You aren't a doctor..." Her voice cut off as the sound of an alarm on her phone blared. John watched her look down on the glowing screen.

"Oh no." She said, her voice as thin as a whip.

"What's wrong?" Roy asked, grunting under the massive weight of John leaning on his shoulder.

Felicity's face went pale, the pink lipstick she favored looked stark and horribly bright.

"The face recognition program found a match of that woman I found in the Verdant security feed."

She flipped her phone over and showed the employee picture of one Miranda St. James, Oliver's personal assistant.

"We need to get back. We...I...need to talk to Oliver. I vetted her. She came up clean, how could we have missed something if she is involved?"

Felicity's eyes shone in the moonlight.

"I don't know," John said, placing a hand on her bare shoulder.  "I don't know, but we will find out."

  


The earth moved under his body. Oliver could feel it shifted and tilting like those games his father once had him play.  You would have to move a steel ball through a maze, dip and rise, up and down, sideways until you got to the center.  His stomach revolved under the motion, and  bile creeped up  his throat.

He willed the boulders holding down his eyelids to move.

Faint light sliced through the cracks, a pair of black heels  filled his vision.

 _What_...he wanted to say, but the word died on the way up his throat, coming out like a hoarse whisper.

The whisper of expensive perfume with the hint of lilac filled his nose. Miranda’s breath touched his ear, “I really can’t see what she ever saw in you.” She mused, almost sounding amused and generally astonished.  She dropped a glass vial next to his head and straightened.

"Good-bye Mr. Queen. Consider this my resignation."  Ice was warmer than Miranda's voice.

Fear slammed into his foggy mind when he could hear her starting to leave and his body would not react to his commands.  He could not get up. He could not move.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her rounding the fountain, just as a flash of gold came into his line of sight.

"Miranda!" Felicity's clear, clean voice cut through some of the haze in his head.  It took a tremendous effort, but he lifted his head up and opened his eyes to see the two women stating face to face. Felicity's hair tumbling down her back, the artful hairstyle of earlier this evening gone. A dark blotch marred the pale gold of her gown right above her right breast. Oliver knew she hadn't seen him yet.  The fountain blocked most of his body, only because of his angle on the floor, could he even see them sideways, like a picture turned at a ninety-degree angle.

Miranda looked unperturbed by the interruption. Instead, she wore the same amiable expression she always had as his assistant, the same which had always served her well in her job.

"Yes, Ms. Smoak? Is there something I can help you with?"  Felicity frowned. Indecision marred her face.  Did she know Miranda was involved?  Would Miranda hurt her?

Panic swelled inside Oliver, burning out everything but just the image of Felicity bleeding or hurt.  Horrible images of his mother burning under pillar of wood, her cries, her death.

No, he wouldn't let it happen again.

_Not again._

"Feli..ci..ty..." He managed to croak out, then taking in a breath which felt more like a drinking in thick liquid.

Both women turned towards the broken sound of his voice.

“Oliver!” Felicity turned to round around the fountain and touched his feverous face.  “What did she do? What is wrong?” She grabbed and managed with his weak help to turn him over, they were pushing him up the marble into a seating position when the sound of a gun cocking back boomed in the garden.

Felicity turned away from him, her eyes once again on the woman standing over them with a small gun in her hands.  Oliver tried to grab the top of Felicity’s arms and pull her away, but he all his strength was gone.  Felicity’s jaw tightened.  

“It is quite unfortunate, Ms. Smoak. I didn’t want to hurt you.”

Felicity did not break eye contact from Miranda, the full skirts of her dress over most of Oliver’s legs and waist.Oliver felt Felicity’s fingers fumble into his pant pocket.   What was she-- then he felt her touch his phone.  

“Why are you doing this, Miranda?” Felicity asked, her voice as hard as the stone holding up Oliver. She pulled the phone out, hidden by her dress.

Miranda didn’t answer, instead her smile grew. A terrible, sick grin born out of contempt and malice.

“Goodbye Ms. Smoak.”

And pulled the trigger.

_NO NOT AGAIN_

Oliver pushed off the stone letting his dead weight fall on Felicity.  Pain sliced and exploded on his back. His world bloomed in agony.

“Oliver!” Felicity’s cry sounded far away, but he could hear it. He could feel her scrabbling underneath. Feel the heat of her body, her breath, her heart. His own thundered in his ear.

_Thud_

She lived.

_Thud_

She lived.

_Thud_

She lived.

Somewhere, far, far away, a banshee wailed and the hard pebbles of the walkway bit into his cheek. Voices, clambered in the air.  The pain pulsed with his heart but he smiled.

_She lived._

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for reading and for all your love for this little fic born of a moment of craziness! This chapter was really uncooperative for some reason, but it is done and now we can move on! I want to apologize to all the comments I haven't responded to yet. RL is being a bear and making it hard for me to find time to respond, but I read all and love them all to bits. You guys are amazing and make this worthwhile to keep writing--Seriously!!


	14. Alone With You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity handles a gun. Oliver wakes up in an unexpected place. Our lovers have a small chat.

The weight of Oliver’s limp body pressed her hard on the gravel ground. Pinned under him, panic and dread exploded through her. Oh god, oh god, oh god, she chanted, praying for the first time in years. She willed her fingers to feel a pulse in his neck as she scrabbled from underneath him. Her heart skipped a beat as they found one—a faint one. Fear skidded inside her mind. She felt her delicate dress rip as she knelt next to him, watching in horror as the dark red blotch on his back started to spread.

“Oliver!” She turned his face towards her. His breath was erratic, his skin, sweaty and pale. Even his scar had turned gray and muted. Panic swelled, fluttering inside making her feel like she would burst into a million pieces.  He had to live.

Live.

Had to live.

The other alternative…

Despair. A chilling black maw. Death.

No. He would not die. He would not die while she was here.

She loved him.

She loved him and found him and heaven helped anyone trying to take him away from her. Felicity kept her eyes on Miranda’s dark ones and let her hand take a fist full of gravel and dirt. She rose.

Miranda looked amused and bored all at once. “I only meant to poison him, but now that he is shot, I am going to need a shooter.  I am disappointed to remove an intellect such as yours before its time, but it is necessary.”

Miranda leveled the gun at Felicity.

Once while sitting in John’s kitchen after dinner, Felicity watched John clean his Glock and asked, “How does it feel?” John looked up, confused.  She had pointed to the gun with the apple in her hand and elaborated, “How does it feel having that pointed at you? Knowing you could be dead in a second if they pull the trigger.”

John turned away from her and kept cleaning the weapon with sure, steady strokes.

“You don’t. Your mind goes blank and you push the fear aside. If you make it, then you handle it.”

She had never really understood. Even with all the training, every time Lyla, John or Roy turned a gun on her, Felicity always froze for a second too long. The gaping hole of the gun terrified her. It reminded her too much of finality, confined into that small space. Death coming to her and robbing her of breath. Robbing her of life.

It didn’t matter that she knew her friends were using blanks, or the hours of drilling, or the times she could do it without the gun’s presence. As soon as they used it, she always hesitated.

But tonight, with the heavy scent of roses mingling in the air with the metallic odor of Oliver’s blood, something else eradicated her fear as Miranda pointed the gun at Felicity’s face.  

Calm.

A singular blanket of focus washed over Felicity as she watched Miranda’s finger on the trigger start pulling back.

It was like watching a movie in slow motion. The world became narrowed in Felicity’s mind. Her body moved without her thinking and as the shot rang out, she was already on the move.

She rolled over Oliver’s still body and threw the gravel into Miranda’s startled face.  The dark haired woman yelled, scrubbing at her stinging face as Felicity scrabbled up and tackled Miranda on the ground.  Felicity took a hold of her wrist and like John taught her, slammed it on the ground.  Later, Felicity would remember the sickening crunch of bone with a satisfaction.

The gun tumbled out of Miranda’s hand and Felicity rammed her elbow into the other woman’s nose, breaking it and taking hold of the gun.

Miranda wailed. Murder blazing in her eyes as she got herself back up on her feet. Felicity held the gun steady.

A noise came from outside, John, Roy and Thea emerged at the entrance.

“Oliver!” Thea screamed and rushed to her brother.

John and Roy flanked Miranda, taking hold of her arms.

“Wait,” Felicity said, her voice cold. Steel. “What did you give him?”

Blood spilled from Miranda’s nose and over her face, making her laugh even more demented,

“Not telling.”

John must have known or seen the look on Felicity’s face because he tried to hold out his hand,

“Felicity—”

“No time,” Felicity muttered and pointed the gun down.

Then fired.

Miranda screeched into the roses.

“OH MY GOD, ARE YOU INSANE?”

Felicity took a step forward. “No. Now tell me what I want to know or I blow off another toe.”

 

 

Something beeped.

Then again.

_Beep_

He tried to scrunch his brows, annoyed at the sound.

_Beep_

Stupid, fucking alarm clock. He wanted to fling it against the wall or knock it off his nightstand.

_Beep_

He had been in the middle of a great dream with Felicity and the park. Her hair shining like a beacon. Her eyes light and bright and her smile so wide.

Felicity…Oliver moved his head, trying to clear up the cloudy feeling in his mind.

Felicity, something about Felicity. Something important he should remember.

_Beep_

Oliver tried to open his eyes, except the lids won’t move. His body felt heavy and weak.

In the back of his mind alarms blared. This is not normal. Something was very wrong. But he couldn’t remember what. Everything still felt unreal and fuzzy.

_Beep_

Turn it off. He tried to say. His lips didn’t open.

_Beep_

Oliver pushed harder, focusing his energy on the muscles on his mouth.

_Beep_

“Tu…”

A rustle sounded around him and then he felt a warmth envelop his limp fingers.

“Oliver?” A frantic female voice said.

_Beep_

Damn it, it was driving him nuts. He felt his tongue wet his lips. A gasp boomed.

“Roy! Roy, get the doctor! He is awake.”

Oliver wanted to grumble that he most certainly did not _want_ to be awake, but the light outside of his lids grew brighter, making it harder to ignore.

“Oliver, can you hear me?” The voice asked.

He wanted to say yes, but all that came out was a strangled grunt.

The voice let out a strained laugh, and he felt a soft kiss on the top of his head.

“The doctor will be here soon.”

With a tremendous effort of moving mountains, he managed to open his eyelids a slit. Feeling the stinging light filter into his eyes.  The room slowly came into focus.

_Beep_

The sterile beige walls of the room held up insipid, calming prints of pastel landscapes. Wires filled his vision. A metal railing on the side of the bed.

_Beep_

Hospital. He was in a hospital.

A flash of gold fluttered from his left. Felicity leaned over his face, tears silently spilling behind her glasses. A huge smile graced her lips.

“Hey.”

Oliver willed his mouth to open.But Felicity pressed a finger on his lips. “No, don’t use up your strength. It is okay. Okay, not okay that you are in the hospital or were poisoned or shot, but you will be okay and that is all that matters.”

His lips moved under her finger, but Felicity’s eyes grew stern. “You are recovering, rest. I promise I will explain everything when you wake.”

He didn’t bother fighting the cocoon of sleep edging towards him. Instead, he gave her hand a slight squeeze and surrendered to it.

 

 

 

The next time he woke dull pain bloomed throughout his body.

Far away someone groaned.

His eyelids obeyed his command and slowly cracked open. Light filtered through and he could make out a shape curled up on the makeshift sofa lining the wall. Blond hair spilled down and her face came into focus.

“Fel-ic-ity?” He managed to croak out.  His voice sounded so small and weak to his ears.  But the sound must have been more than enough because she stirred and shot up on the sofa.

“Oliver?” Her sleepy voice floated to him, and she rubbed her eyes, putting on the glasses that had been resting on the small table next to the sofa.

“What…” he wanted to ask more, but had to stop to lick his lips. His mouth felt so dry. Felicity moved towards him, and with a soft half smile, sat down next to him, taking his hand in hers.

The heat of her skin warmed into his cold fingers.

“It is okay. Don’t push to talk. Do you want some water?” Her thumb rubbed over his knuckles. He managed a nod. Felicity’s smile widen as she poured the cool water into the plastic cup, slipping a straw in the liquid for him.

“Here. Take is slow. The doctor said to take small sips.”  She guided the straw to his chapped lips. He took a small drag. Cold water burst into his dry mouth. Uncontrollable coughing racked his body.

Felicity quickly put the cup down and scouted in the bed, helping him sit up a little, patting on his back to help him control the coughing.

“It’s…o…ka…y” He sputtered in between breaths. He felt her still behind him. Maybe he was taking advantage of the situation, but he let himself relax and settle into her.  When she tried to move out of the way to give him room, he grunted, “No. Stay.”  

Hesitation warred in her. He could feel it almost like a current coming out of her pores, but when he turned his head and caught her gnawing on her lower lip, she let out a small, nervous laugh.

“Oh, alright.”  Rearranging herself next to him, she laid on her side, her fingers tracing his face.

Touching everything, his hair, his eyelids, his lashes, his nose, his scars, his jaw, his lips.

He couldn’t say anything.

Even if he had the will to speak, the look in her eyes obliterated his reason.

Behind the lens, her eyes looked huge and blue, so very serious like that one day in the garden. She was lost in herself, looking like she was in the presence of something utterly beautiful. A small tear cut a trail down her face, then another followed. Her lips trembled, and then so did her fingers.  He raised his hand and captured hers on his scarred cheek. Feeling a pinprick behind his eyes.

“What’s wrong?”

Felicity bit her lip again, but Oliver could tell it was to give her a chance to compose herself. Her fingers relaxed under his, her touch burning through his skin, spreading down into his soul. She closed her eyes and pressed her forehead against his. He watched her swallow.

“I almost lost you.”  She rasped.

The words punched a hole in him. A gaping black hole sucking him into its center. The dark dragged him down and then he remembered. Remembered the horrible feeling. The realization Felicity may die. Miranda. The garden, the gun. Felicity. Felicity. Saving Felicity.

“How?” She didn’t say anything for a moment and Oliver was worried he would have explain what he meant. But then he should have known better. It was Felicity after all.

“Miranda didn’t expect me to fight back. I got the gun and held her off until John and Roy came. We got her to tell us what she gave you and we were able to get you to the hospital with enough time to stabilize you.  Thankfully, we were able to create an antidote from plants in your botany lab. The poison was what really did a number on you. You body needed time to recover The gunshot went through your side, but didn’t hit anything vital. The doctors say you should be okay to leave in a few days.”

There was so much there. He could feel each word stacked with layers upon layers of things left unsaid.

Maybe he wasn’t the only one who needed time.

Whatever happened in that moment he passed out from the shot and poison, affected his hurricane. Later he would get the details. Later he would find out exactly why Miranda did what she did. Later he would talk with John and Roy and figure out how far this goes.

Later.

But right now he just wanted to hold this amazing woman in his arms.

Right now, he just needed to make sure she was real.

He lifted his lips to her forehead and kissed it.

“I almost lost you too.” He said, feeling a shiver go through her. His left arm moved over her and he brought her close into his embrace.

For a few moments, the room fell silent to the sounds of the machines, and Felicity’s breath tickling his chest. He could feel it. The storm building inside her petite frame. Tension and her self-control were getting dangerously close to breaking.

His beautiful, brave Felicity

“It’s okay.” He said, “let it go.”

Then Felicity Smoak, his perpetual sunshine, let out a shuddered breath and burst into tears.

  
  
  


It took a while for the storm the past.

When it subsided, his gown was wet and Felicity sniffled, trying to separate herself from his arms.

“No.” He said, using the little power he had to keep her with him.

Felicity pushed on his chest, “Oh god, I just slobbered all over you.” Her puffy eyes looked swollen under her lens.  Oliver took her distraction to pull of her glasses.

“Don’t worry. I am able to handle a little slobber.”

She snorted a wet laugh.

“Come back here,” he said, tugging her back to her previous position. The top of her head fit perfectly underneath his jaw. Then again everything about Felicity felt perfect. He let out a content

sigh.

“I must be killing your arm. Oliver, just let me go so you can get some sleep.”

“Nope.” He smiled and kissed the top of her head. “I am sorry, Ms. Smoak, but I am afraid you are stuck with me.”

Her laugh this time sounded lighter, closer to his sunshine.

“We can’t stay permanently attached at the hip you know.”

“Sure we can. I mean it might be hell going to the bathroom sometimes, but then we have the excuse of taking co-ed showers.”

Laughter filled the room and she pinched his arm.

“Is that really how you should treat an injured man, Ms. Smoak?” He teased.

But he felt her still. Dread crawled up his spine. Did he just upset her?

“Felicity, sweetheart, I was teasing. I am sorry, I-”

Small hands made fists into his gown. “I can’t lose you, Oliver.”   

He cursed his stupidity for making a joke about his injury so soon. He gathered her to him again. Take in deep breaths of her scent deep into his lungs. Let her fill him from the inside out. Love for this woman bubbled out of the empty spaces of his soul. Places he never thought would ever heal, ever be nothing but withered, charged remains, now groaned as life pulsed through them.

Fear erupted in his heart. Would she pull away? Would she say what happened was too much? But most of him felt free, in a state of free-failing and exhilaration. Felicity brought him back to life. With each of her smiles and sassy comments, with each note of her laughter, each touch of her fingers, of her lips, of her skin. She saved him from a bleak world of gray and black, of sharp lines and emptiness. It was worth the risk. She was worth the risk. He opened his mouth and spoke.

“Felicity. There is no way you can lose me. You saved me. Over and over you saved me. Only way you are getting rid of me is if you tell me to go.”

She pulled her head from under his chin and looked up at him. Her eyes soft and beautiful. The smile on her lips small and gorgeous.

“Naw, I think I will keep you around.” And kissed him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for sticking with this little story! It is because of you that I keep going to finish it! In bittersweet news we are almost there! There will be one or two (depending on how the writing goes) to wrap up the story and an Epilogue. Fair warning. The next chapter will have sexy times thus the rating will go up to M. Massive hugs to all of you. You are all amazing!!!


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